Rise of the Midnight Raiders
by DarkNovelist1217
Summary: Prior to SC5, Thalias, son of Tira and Nightmare is born. Left alone by his mother after the azure knight is defeated, the young man lived a life of anger and isolation. He remembers only one thing from his youth: to become the strongest warrior, and to one day confront his parents. Along the way, he will experience hatred, loyalty, strength, and maybe even love. Set during SC5 R
1. Chapter 1

**Rise of the Midnight Raiders**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Dark Beginnings**

* * *

Tira scowled at the bundle in her arms as she walked through the moonlit forest. The child she carried was not one of choice, but rather a punishment for a grievous failure just over a year ago. She could still remember clearly how it had happened.

"**You insolent, worthless brat!"** the azure knight had roared, just before promptly swatting her aside.

"Forgive me, my lord! It was just a mistake!" she had said in her defense.

"**Just a mistake?! You were supposed to destroy Soul Calibur and kill that meddlesome wretch Siegfried! But apparently it was too big a task for someone like you, seeing as how he is currently making his way here with the spirit sword in hand! If you ask me, the only mistake around here was allowing you to serve under me in the first place!"**

Nightmare raised his malfested arm to strike her again. Tira cringed and waited for the blow to land. Physical punishment such as this was common from the azure knight, so she would probably be able to endure it like she had countless times before. Besides, if he did kill her, then she would be absorbed by Soul Edge, her true master, and thus would fulfill her purpose. But, at the last moment he stopped. Nightmare seemed to go into thought for a moment, just before his wicked yellow eyes shone with cruel intent.

"**You know what? I know an even greater punishment I can give you, one that will ensure you don't make another careless mistake."**

Without warning, he lashed out with his malfested arm and slashed across Tira's front, ripping apart her top and the front of her pants. The insane girl fell to the floor with a yelp, shortly before the azure knight pinned her beneath him. From behind his helmet, Nightmare smiled maliciously as he removed the armor around his waist. Realization dawned on Tira at seeing the garments drop to the floor.

"No…my lord, please no! Not that!"

"**I'm afraid it's necessary, my servant. If I don't teach you a lesson, how will you ever learn? Now, be obedient and hold still…"**

She screamed as he entered her. When it was over, Tira could only pick herself up and find a corner to hide in. Eventually, her son, Thalias was born. Though the azure knight despised children, he ordered Tira to keep him alive so that she could properly endure her torment, lest she be forced to look after another. By then Siegfried had battled and chased them to the outskirts of Wolfkrone, where the wielders of Soul Edge and Soul Calibur held one final duel. In the end, the azure knight fell, and with him Soul Edge. No longer threatened by him, Tira decided to put an end to Thalias. Taking a fragment of the cursed sword she had managed to recover, she roared with fury before stabbing the fragment into the infant's chest. Her darker personality took over, and smiled with glee as the child cried out in pain. But then, something happened that she would never have suspected. Instead of killing Thalias, the fragment merged with him, disappearing inside his body and leaving a glaring red scar. Before Tira could make another attempt on his life, she was discovered by the soldiers of Wolfkrone, and was forced to flee for the time being.

"It'll take some time," she said to herself as she walked. "But my master will return. And when he does, he will need someone strong enough to wield him. But who…"

A thought suddenly entered her split mind, and she smiled in mischief.

"Ah, yes…she would be an easy pawn to play. But, even if it takes awhile, she'll become the perfect wielder for Soul Edge."

Thalias fussed in her grasp suddenly, causing her to glare down at him. The boy had wolfish yellow eyes, lightly tanned skin, and hair the color of midnight. Thalias reached up with a small hand toward his mother and tried to speak. Being little more than a year old, it was somewhat garbled, but Tira could make out what he was trying to say.

"Mama…"

The insane girl paused at this, then renewed her glare.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?! I tried to kill you, you whimpering little insect! How can you still want to be with me after that?"

Thalias just reached toward her again.

"Mama…"

"Everything was fine until you came along! I was able to work faithfully for my master, without having to put up with your stupid crying, your stupid shit, and making sure you kept your stupid life! Do you understand?! I hate you! Your mama hates you! I wish you were never born!"

Tira heard wolves howling nearby. She looked back at her son and held him away from her, causing him to whimper in distress.

"I should just leave you here…wolves love easy meals, right? I hear crying babies are special treats for them."

Thalias could only watch helplessly as his mother put him down in front of a tree, and slowly start to back away. Tira looked down at him with a sinister smile.

"Ta ta, sweetums. Mama's got a lot of work to do. Make sure you scream extra loud when they're eating you."

With that, the insane girl cackled maniacally as she ran off into the night. As she leapt from tree to tree, Tira found herself pausing for reasons as Thalias began to wail and call for her. She found herself glancing back briefly, then shaking her head as she ran off. Back on the ground, a pack of hungry wolves was circling Thalias. The infant cowered in fear as it cried out desperately.

"Mama! Mama!"

The lead wolf snarled before preparing to pounce. Thalias saw a flash of teeth, then in the next instant the wolf and all its allies were nothing but bloody bits. Tira stood in front of her son, blood staining her large ring blade. Growling, she picked up Thalias and started on her way again.

" Rrrrr, fuck! I can't believe I'm doing this! If there's one thing I hate more than children, its weaklings! You're a piece of shit, but you're still my son!" she cursed through clenched teeth.

Thalias looked up at his mother in wonder, tears still streaming down his face. Soon enough, they began to near a small town the insane girl often visited. Tira glared down at her son while approaching the local orphanage.

"If anyone's going to kill you, it'll be me! But it's no fun if you're just a stunted weakling, I want to enjoy breaking you. So, until the time comes for me to gut you…"

Her violet eyes stared straight into the yellow of his as she set him down. Though no one was around to see it, her gaze softened by a fraction.

"Become strong. Become a more powerful warrior than me, and…more powerful than _him._"

Not daring to look back lest she change her mind unexpectedly again, Tira turned and vanished into the darkness of night.

* * *

**17 Years later…**

* * *

Thalias sat meditating deep within the caverns of an ancient mountain. Much had changed about the feeble child left on the doorstep of an orphanage so long ago. As he had gotten older, he had become more and more aware of how different he was from others. For reasons he could neither understand nor explain, he felt…higher…than his peers. Something about them seemed so lesser to him that he often times found himself growing angry simply by being close to those he deemed inferior. Because of this, he often wound up brawling with his fellow villagers, sometimes nearly beating his opponents to death before being restrained. What was more, he would sometimes begin to feel an odd presence of some sort, as though there was another being entirely within him, lying dormant. It called to him sometimes, whispering words of promised power in his mind. There was much he had not understood about his mother's parting words, but he had figured out one thing. He needed to become strong, and when he did he would find her again. And when he did that, he'd make her pay for abandoning him so long ago. So, not long after he had turned 16, he sought out the monk Kilik, a man said to have trained under the legendary Edge Master, a man who was skilled with every kind of weapon. The journey had been long, but eventually he found Kilik and asked him for training. Though the monk was unnerved by the dark aura that surrounded the young man, he accepted. For two years, Thalias trained to become a great warrior. While experimenting with different kinds of weaponry, he found himself favoring a cutlass with a slightly longer than normal blade. It was an ideal weapon for one such as himself. Broad, strong, and able to cut through most anything in his path. Now 18 and at the height of his physical human abilities, Thalias' hair had now grown shoulder length and wavy, and his physique was that of an able bodied fighter. Still, it was not enough for Thalias. He knew that Kilik was hiding something from him. He could sense the uncertainty in the monk's eyes as he watched from beneath his mask. Putting on his black and gold embroidered cloak and armor and retrieving Swift Reaver, his cutlass, Thalias made his way to Kilik. The monk was standing at the edge of the river that ran through the mountain, a golden staff in hand. Somehow, Thalias had a feeling he was waiting for him.

"Hey, monk." the young man called.

Kilik's head turned slightly to the side in acknowledgement.

"What is it, Thalias? Another sparring match?"

"No. I've got a question for you."

The monk paused at this, then nodded for him to continue.

"For two years you've trained me, so I must ask: am I finally strong enough to search for my father?"

Kilik sighed heavily and turned all the way around to face the young man.

"Tell me, in all your life, have you ever considered that there are more paths to take than useless revenge? Your father disappeared, and your mother abandoned you. It is plainly obvious that neither of them wish to see you, so why would you bother seeking them out?"

Anger rose in Thalias as he glared.

"To make them pay. I want to know why they left me, and I want to know who the hell the bastard that made me was."

"Then, perhaps its time I told you something I should have said a year ago."

Despite the fact he was wearing a mask, Thalias could feel Kilik's ice cold glare upon him.

"Even though we are in seclusion, the comings and goings of the world do not escape my attention. I learned of a rumor that a malfested woman who had once served under the azure knight, Nightmare, had given birth to a son. For reasons no one could understand, she left the child in a small village, and vanished. It was said that this child held an aura of supreme darkness around him, one that mirrored that of his father's…"

Thalias was sweating in anxiety and shock as Kilik finished.

"An aura, that mirrored that of Nightmare."

The young man stared blankly in realization. _Nightmare…my father…is Nightmare…the azure knight…the wielder of Soul Edge…he's my father…_ the shock in Thalias' eyes began to change once again to anger, but now they also held a fierce determination.

"So, that's how it is…" he growled.

"You are the child of the greatest threat to ever befall this world. I had hoped with my training that you would abandon your delusions of revenge. Even should the azure knight return, you are powerless before him."

Thalias grinned maniacally, showing off unusually sharp teeth.

"Abandon my revenge? Fuck that! If Nightmare really is my father, then it'll just make it all the better when I kill him! His reign has ended, so its time for someone else to become Soul Edge's master! And that someone…is me."

The young man drew his cutlass and entered a fighting stance.

"I'll start by kicking your ass, monk."

Kilik simply glared at Thalias for a moment before sighing once again.

"So you have committed yourself to the darkness within you, then? Very well. If you wish to face me, then I will allow it. However, you are no match for me."

(Battle theme: Samsara: The Wheel of Eternity (Kilik's theme))

Thalias charged toward the monk with an angry shout. Kilik effortlessly ducked under a swing at his head and smacked the young man in his side. Thalias cringed, but was undeterred as he swung again, this time in a three slash barrage. The monk managed to deflect two of the blows with a whirl of his staff, but the third cut across his soldier. Shrugging off the pain, Kilik then struck with both his staff and feet. Thalias was too occupied with a strike to block, and took the full force of all the blows. Quickly rising to his feet, the young man shot his foot out as the monk was coming in for another strike. Thalias' armored boot hit Kilik in his gut, stunning him long enough for the downward cut that followed to land. The monk staggered back, blood running down his arm and chest. Focusing, Kilik then spun his staff in a vertical wheel like motion, striking the young man several times with the end of it before sending one final strike that launched him into the air. As Thalias began to descend, the monk then used his staff as a pole to lift him up enough to spin around the staff and kick the young man before he finally crashed back onto the ground. Despite the sever injuries, Thalias rose back to his feet and readied his sword once more. He ran toward the monk, then just as a blow was made at his head, he went into a thrust position to both dodge and prepare for the kick and upward thrust that followed immediately after. Kilik staggered back, then grit his teeth as he readied his staff. Before Thalias could react, he was launched into the air by an upward strike.

"I have reached…" the monk began as he leapt into the air.

Kilik delivered a trio of mid air roundhouse kicks before readying his staff for the next blow.

"Enlightenment!"

The monk sent the young man back to the ground with a final swing of his staff. Thalias shakily got his knees, badly bruised and beaten by the constant punishment. Kilik sternly held his staff toward the young man.

"It's fate. You weren't meant to win." he declared.

Absolute hate shined in the young man's eyes. He grit his abnormally sharp teeth as though he were an enraged beast.

"Fate? Don't screw with me! I wi**ll not fail before I've even begun!"**

Kilik flinched in shock at the sudden distortion in the young man's voice. Looking out from beneath his mask, he saw an almost ethereal red glow begin to emanate from Thalias' eyes, and his right arm began to twitch uncontrollably. Crying out in mixed pain and anger, the young man watched the armor around his arm vanish as it suddenly became deformed and covered in organic rock like spikes and glowing veins. Now five gruesome claws gripped the hilt of his cutlass in place of fingers, all of which were glowing with the dark energy inside of him. _This monstrous sight…could it be?! _thought the monk. Cackling insanely, Thalias stood back to full height, all of his injuries fully healed.

"**That hurt, monk. Now it's my turn!"**

Before Kilik could make a move, Thalias was upon him, slashing about wildly and brutally, leaving no room for defense. In the midst of his onslaught, the monk saw an opening and made to counterattack. Kilik swung his staff at the opening, only to have Thalias grab it with his still human hand. Grinning madly, the young man tore the staff from his opponent's hands, just before plunging his sword into his stomach. Though the blow was not fatal, it was still very severe. While Kilik grunted in pain, Thalias grabbed his head with his normal hand, and held the deformed one back in preparation.

"**The weak, shall die!"**

In one swift move, he delivered a powerful punch that struck with enough force to make his sword fly out of Kilik's stomach as the monk went flying into the river of the cave. Whether he lived or died after that, Thalias did not care. The young man was currently entranced with the strange and gruesome transformation his arm had undergone. The voice that whispered in his mind was stronger than ever now, seemingly gaining in strength and volume along with the arm. But then, just as quickly as it had appeared, his arm went back to normal, and the glow vanished from his eyes. _What was that? Somehow, that arm made me powerful…just what the hell is inside me? And more importantly…_ he grinned wickedly.

"…how do I make it permanent? With that power, I could become the strongest warrior that ever lived, and…I could defeat my father."

With this resolution in mind, Thalias packed up what belongings he had and departed from the cave. With Kilik possibly dead, the young warrior needed a new master, hopefully one that could teach him the truth about his strange power. A few days of traveling later, while he was in his room at an inn in a small town, a knock came at his door.

"Whoever's there, get lost. I've got a long day ahead of me tomorrow and I need my rest." Thalias growled from his bedside chair.

"I think you'll find my words well worth listening to, son of Nightmare." came an indistinguishable voice from the other side of the door.

A figure of average height entered the room, wearing a pitch black hooded cloak that obscured their features. Thalias narrowed his eyes at the intruder as he stood up with his cutlass drawn.

"Who are you?"

A sinister smile and a flash of bright red eyes could be seen briefly beneath the figure's hood as they looked at him.

"Someone who's going to help you kill your father."

* * *

**A/N: **And so it begins. I've been planning this story for a loooooooong time now, but I only recently got the motivation to actually start. I promise to update as soon as I am able, and to write this story to the best of my ability. Please be sure to review, as it akways helps to receive other people's input. Till next time! DarkNovelist out.

**Note:** Thalias is an actual custom character I use in Soul Calibur 5. He wears black and gold, and uses the Damascus sword (a weapon under Mitsurugi's style)


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: The Rival**

* * *

"I am someone who's going to help you kill your father."

Thalias paused at this. Despite his urge to punish the intruder for disturbing him in the late hours of the night, they seemed to know an awful lot about him, considering they had gone so far as to address his lineage. And though it annoyed him to admit it, he had absolutely no idea where Nightmare was or how powerful he could be, so at least for now he would need some help. Reluctantly, he sheathed Swift Reaver, but still kept an eye trained in the hooded figure.

"That's quite the proposition, stranger. Lucky for you, I am in need of certain information, and it seems you can provide me with it. Now, speak." he demanded.

"I'd watch my tone if I were you, _boy._ I might just decide to leave you with nothing. Or better yet, I could kill you now, and save your parents the trouble. But, you amuse me, so I think I'll tolerate a little insolence." the figure answered.

They nodded at the chair behind Thalias. Understanding the gesture as a sign to sit, the young warrior did as asked. The figure took their own seat by the window, making sure no part of their body was revealed as they moved. Once seated, they looked at Thalias again.

"Now then, where shall I begin?"

"Start with what you know about me and my family. I've recently found the rest of the world to be better informed about my ancestry than myself."

"True, but none more so than I." the figure cleared their throat as they prepared to speak further.

"As I'm sure you're already aware, you are the offspring of the malfested woman Tira and the azure knight, Nightmare. As to how such loveless beings decided to conceive you, I do not know. What I do know is that your mother deeply resented you, and when you were little more than an infant, she tried to end your life."

Thalias cringed mentally at this. Sadly, one of the clearest memories of his childhood was when his mother, brandishing a glowing metallic shard, laughed with insane delight while plunging the shard into his body. He could still hear her screaming obscenities at him when the injury failed to slay him.

"Continue." he said in a low tone.

"The blade she used in her attempt to kill you was none other than a fragment of the cursed sword, Soul Edge. But, instead of killing you as was intended, the fragment merged with your flesh, and bound itself to your soul. In doing so, it stripped you of your humanity, and transformed you into one of the malfested. The fragment must have seen potential in you, which is why you survived the wound. In doing so, it has filled you with the power necessary to become Soul Edge's wielder."

Thalias looked to his right arm as he took in the information. There were still hints of where the glowing veins in its transformed state had been. _So that strength I had when I fought Kilik…that was Soul Edge? That was the power of the cursed sword? Interesting…_ he thought. The figure noticed the shift in his gaze and smiled deviously.

"Oh? Has it shown you the power of which I speak?" they inquired.

"Yes…my arm transformed, and I felt a rush of strength inside of me. I used it to defeat my master. But as soon as I won, my arm turned back to normal, and the power vanished. The power…Soul Edge's strength…it felt incredible…"

The figure's smile widened, and it stood up. Thalias watched them walk until they were standing in front of him.

"What you used was merely a fraction of the power you will come to possess, should you follow my instructions. I can help you to hone that power, to refine it, perfect it. I can teach you to use it permanently, and how to turn it against Nightmare."

Thalias' eyes lit up with dark excitement.

"How do I command it? How do I obtain more power?"

"The method to gaining Soul Edge's power is simple. You must harvest the souls of others, and possess a powerful will. Just kill, harvest, refine, and repeat. An alternative method would be to gather other split fragments of the blade, then the power increase would be tremendous. However, regardless of how you go about harnessing your power, there is a price to pay…"

The figure's cloak parted, and it extended a grotesquely malfested arm, though thinner and much more deformed than Thalias' had been. The young warrior stared at the arm in mild surprise. He had suspected the figure to be a malfested, given their extensive knowledge of the cursed sword, but had never imagined their corruption to have been so great.

"As malfested, our bodies become more and more twisted the more connected we become to Soul Edge. As you can see, we're very well acquainted."

The figure quickly retracted their arm back inside their cloak, too fast for Thalias to get a glimpse of their appearance.

"That is the cost of becoming one with the cursed sword. Limitless dark power, but with the loss of all your humanity. Think carefully, son of Nightmare. Are you willing to abandon your humanity in order to face your father and wield true power?"

It took little time for Thalias to make his choice. He already thought himself different from humans, that he was far greater than anything they could hope to achieve. Besides, neither of his parents were human, so what difference would it make to become a greater monster? As far as he knew, he was never human to begin with. With a determined glare, he stood up and loomed over the figure.

"So long as I can overcome Nightmare and my mother, then I don't care what it takes. I was never human anyway. Show me how to become the strongest warrior this world has ever seen!"

The figure smiled deviously again and bowed slightly.

"As you wish. However, there is much to be done before I can begin your training. There are a few important requirements you must meet for in order to see your desires fulfilled."

Thalias raised an eyebrow in annoyed confusion.

"Such as?"

"To begin with, your father commands an army of malfested warriors like us, and not a small one. The first thing you must do is gather allies of your own."

"Gather allies? But I don't need help! I'm strong enough on my own!"

"Even the strongest warrior is as powerless as a stone against a fortress when pitted against the azure knight's forces. You will set out from here, find others like yourself who would see Nightmare's end, and make them your loyal servants."

"And just how would I do that? If they're anything like me, then words alone will not buy their allegiance."

The figure paused for a moment as they went into thought, then grinned as an idea formed in their mind.

"You're right. Malfested require action, not words. Only the strongest are fit to rule our kind. However, your current power might not be enough to convince them. So I guess for now you can focus on harvesting souls."

The young warrior nodded.

"All I have to do is kill a few unlucky bastards, and their souls become mine, right?"

"Were your weapon the cursed sword instead of that cutlass, then it would be that simple."

"Are you saying Swift Reaver is not an adequate weapon? It is far stronger than any sword I have ever encountered!"

"Calm yourself, son of Nightmare. It is not strength your blade lacks, it is merely the right…'properties'. Give me your arm, and keep a firm grip on your weapon."

Curiosity overruling his frustration, Thalias obeyed. The figure took hold of his arm, and began to focus. The young warrior cringed in pain as a ripple of power ran down his arm, transforming and reverting it until reaching his hand. Suddenly, Swift Reaver began to radiate a violet and black aura as dark flesh like tendrils grew along the hilt and base of the blade, wrapping around the guard and sprouting what resembled teeth as outward facing spikes as a means of offensive protection for his hand. Halfway up the blade, the tendrils stopped, and for the finishing touch the sword's blade turned the color of midnight. Swift Reaver now resembled a demonic sword made from fused flesh and steel. Thalias turned the altered weapon over in his hand, admiring its dark beauty.

"Swift Reaver is now an extension of your power," the figure explained, letting go of the young warrior's arm.

"Anyone who falls to this blade will relinquish their soul to you, and in doing so will help to further increase your power. Consider it a gift to help start your revenge."

Thalias glanced at the figure.

"It looks like I owe you my thanks, stranger. However, there is still something that I must know."

"And what would that be?"

The young warrior loomed over the figure as he stared directly into where their eyes should be.

"Why are you helping me to overthrow Nightmare?"

There was a long pause before they answered.

"…my reasons are my own. That's all you need to know for now." the figure turned to leave.

"When you have gained enough followers, and have become strong, then I will teach you. Until then, I will be watching from the shadows. Farewell, Thalias."

"Wait! There is one last thing I wish to know."

The figured stopped at the door to listen.

"Who…are you?"

"…..Sanguine. Until I decided you're worthy enough for my true name, you may call me Sanguine."

The young warrior nodded.

"Then, farewell, Sanguine."

The figure nodded, then disappeared behind the door. Thalias spent another few minutes contemplating Sanguine's words and admiring his newly enhanced sword, which he renamed Dusk's Talon after its dark blade, before going to sleep.

* * *

A few days after Sanguine visited, he made his way across the continent to the country of Hungary, where a brutal war had broken out. Apparently the country's leader, a man by the name of Graf Dumas, had deemed the opposing faction as the malfested, an idea that was well suited to one of his soldiers in particular: Patroklos Alexandra, a fighter who went about calling himself a 'holy warrior'. While the rumors of such a fool were of no consequence to Thalias, he decided that a land teeming with conflict would be the perfect place to start searching for allies, and more immediately, to gain souls. Sometime afterward, he arrived in the war torn nation. It didn't take long for the young warrior to find a battle between the 'malfested' rebels and the Hungarian soldiers in a fairly large city. He strode toward the conflict with a devilish smirk on his face, drawing his cutlass.

"Hey! Who are you?" demanded one of the soldiers.

Thalias answered by slicing him in half. The rebels put on smirks of their own as the young warrior made short work of the rest, thinking they had gained a new ally. Thalias couldn't help but laugh insanely at their shocked expressions when he turned on them immediately after. Without even having to use his powers, he had already slain a dozen people. Dusk's Talon hummed as it glowed with violet and black energy in his grasp. Realizing what the action most likely meant, the young warrior held it out toward the corpses.

"Souls…come unto me!" he declared.

As if in response, streams of light colored energy quickly flew from the bodies into his sword. The souls of his enemies now absorbed, Thalias felt a momentary surge of power course through him. _It's working, excellent. _he thought, smiling in wicked amusement. Satisfied with what he had accomplished here, he then moved on to another part of the city, claiming more lives as he went. Eventually, he found a group of more elite looking soldiers closing in on a single individual. The person was a man with bright red hair and a fairly thick beard, and wore an aristocratic black leather coat, shirt, pants, gloves, and boots. He carried a cane with a dragon's head at the top in his left hand. At first Thalias was confused as to why such a person would be targeted by the soldiers, until he noticed the man's eyes. The sclera of them was black, and his irises were an ethereal red. Without a doubt, the man was a malfested.

"Stop right there, you malfested swine! There's nowhere left to run!" said the lead soldier.

The man grinned arrogantly.

"**Such poor manners! As expected of military fools, you underestimate me…"** he said in a mature and distorted voice.

At what seemed to be lightning fast speed, the man drew a sword hidden within his cane, dashed toward the nearest soldier, and cut him down. The other soldiers charged toward him, attacking simultaneously. Though the malfested man was quick, his opponents were too many, and he was soon knocked to the ground. Thalias found the man's skills to be to his liking, and since it would be a shame to lose a valuable ally, he came to the man's side in time to block a strike from the soldier's blades.

"You've got some good moves there, malfested." he said as he turned to the man.

"I find myself in need of warriors with skills like yours, and I would greatly appreciate your assistance. How about it?"

"**Young man, are you asking me to become your-your underling?! Do I look like some sort of barbaric mercenary to you?"**

Thalias sighed. _So much for words._

"Okay then. If that's how it's going to be, then you can either serve under me or die. How does that sound?"

"Hey! Don't ignore us! We're in the middle of a fight here!" the soldiers said as more joined their number.

Thalias turned back to them and readied his blade. The malfested man thought for a moment about the offer, then stood up beside the young warrior.

"**Let's settle this with a duel. Whoever kills the most of these uncivilized brutes wins."**

Thalias smirked.

"Sounds good to me."

At this, they charged toward the soldiers. Around five minutes later, all of the normal humans lay dead. Thalias quickly did some mental calculation as he absorbed the souls of those he had slain.

"I count 10. How about you?"

The malfested man groaned in annoyance.

"**I felled 7. Damn your ruthlessness. (sigh) Well, I am a man of my word, and you won fair and square, so I will serve as your ally from this day forth. To be honest, I really had nothing else to be doing anyway."**

The man held out his hand, and Thalias shook it, sealing their contract.

"Glad to hear it. By the way, what is your name?"

"**I am Lord Achreion Diavolos, a nobleman of sorts before my current condition. I lost my estate and was disowned, all because I became malfested. What about you, young man?"**

"I am Thalias, son of Nightmare."

Achreion's eyes widened in surprise at this.

"**Nightmare? As in the fabled azure knight who wields the accursed Soul Edge?"**

"The very same. Though, I hold no loyalty towards him. On the contrary, I intend to do away with him and become Soul Edge's new master. That is why I require an army of strong warriors such as yourself."

The nobleman scratched his beard in thought.

"**The son of the azure knight…seeking to overthrow his father? That is a very interesting, and very foolish pursuit. Most people would either cower in fear, call you a lunatic, or join you for the sake of stealing Soul Edge for themselves."**

Thalias narrowed his eyes accusingly.

"And which of those are you?"

"**None of them. I for one, am intrigued by this idea, and will faithfully aid you in your goal. I've no desire for the accursed sword, but to fight alongside the one who would slay Nightmare…now that would provide me with all the glory I seek."**

The young warrior grinned in amusement.

"Then you shall have your glory, Achreion. Now, I intend to gather a bit more power in this city before I leave. Unless you'd like to join me, make for the next nearest town, and I shall meet you there."

The nobleman nodded in understanding, then wished him luck as he departed from the city. Thalias walked in a different direction, smiling with satisfaction as he went. He had already obtained his first ally. _Well that wasn't so hard. If the rest of the malfested are this easy to convince, then I'll have my army in no time._ He thought as he continued to cut down any soldiers and rebels that crossed his path. At some point, he saw three of the rebels fighting with a man who looked around the same age as himself, with short wavy blonde hair, blue eyes, white clothing, a scaled coat with a bobcat fur woven around the back of the collar, and in his hands he wielded a crimson shield with an Ω on it, and a short sword. The man was swift and acrobatic in his attacks, and Thalias found that the shield also served as a sheath for his sword, a combination he sometimes used for more devastating attacks. Within no time at all, the blonde warrior had felled all three of the rebels, smirking triumphantly as the last of them collapsed.

"Malfested vermin have no right to live!" he sneered with blatant arrogance.

The blonde then noticed a poor beggar observing his battle from close by, and he approached them.

"You there, you're pale and filthy, you must be a malfested as well."

The beggar shook his head and hands fearfully.

"No my lord! I am not one of them!"

The blonde held up his sword and looked it over.

"Is that so?"

_SCHINK!_

The beggar looked down in shock to see the blonde warrior's sword sticking into his now bleeding side. The warrior smiled sinisterly at him.

"Unfortunately, there's no way for you to prove it."

The beggar collapsed to the ground with a thud, and the other citizens that had been watching fled in terror. Thalias glared at the blonde warrior in confused frustration. He had not sensed anything even remotely close to Soul Edge's power about the beggar, and though he too would kill those who were weaker than him, the outright murder of someone who couldn't even lift a sword angered him. Gritting his teeth, he approached the blonde warrior with his weapon drawn.

"Hey, you! The murderous bastard!" Thalias called, stopping a few feet behind the other warrior.

The blonde turned to face him.

"And just who is this 'murderous bastard' you're referring to?"

"I'm talking about you, dumbass!"

"Me? How dare you! I am a holy warrior, sworn to rid this world of the scum that is the malfested! Who are you to judge me?"

"I am called Thalias, and I just so happen to be one of those 'scum'. Who the hell are you?"

The blonde glared as he readied his weapons.

"I am Patroklos Alexandra, and I will crush you in the name of justice!"

(Battle theme: Sword of Resolution (Patroklos' Theme))

Patroklos rushed forward, attempting a shoulder bash with his shield. Thalias dodged to the side in time and slashed down at the blonde. Patroklos quickly held up his shield in defense and deflected the strike, following it up with a quick thrust. Thalias cringed as the blade dug part way into his chest, then countered by first performing a low spin kick to knock the blonde off balance, then adding an upward slash that cut across his torso. Patroklos grit his teeth and tried to back away a few feet. Thalias didn't give him time to recover though, as he did a 360˚ double slash with his sword. The blonde managed to barely evade both blows, then did a quick trio of thrusts and bashes in response. Thalias blocked each of the blows, then placing one hand on his sword's blade thrust it vertically forward. The quickness of the attack caused the blade to partially cut into Patroklos' shield as he attempted to block it. Then before the blonde could try to counter attack, Thalias channeled some of his power into his cutlass, causing his eyes to temporarily glow an ethereal red.

"**Bear witness…"** he began.

The malfested warrior launched his opponent into the air with an upward slash.

"…**to true power!"**

He brought his sword back down, slamming Patroklos into the ground as the blow landed. The blonde quickly got to his feet and grunted in frustration. As Thalias made to strike again, the blonde performed a quick backflip kick that struck the malfested's chin. Thalias growled in anger before doing a low sweep with his sword. Patroklos crouched down to block it, but discovered too late that the attack was merely a feint. Thalias smirked as he delivered a swift uppercut that knocked the blonde back. Patroklos staggered a bit, then glared furiously at his opponent as he sheathed his sword within his shield.

"I will show you…" he began.

Before Thalias could react, the blonde delivered an uppercut with the pommel of his sword that launched him into the air. While his opponent was airborne, Patroklos flung his sword into the malfested's gut.

"…the price of justice!"

The blonde leapt into the air and withdrew his sword from Thalias just before he came crashing back down to the ground. The malfested staggered to his feet, clutching at the recent and sever injury. Patroklos smirked at him arrogantly, and rushed forward. Thalias glared in anger as he stepped back, then quickly thrust forward, cutting deeply into the blonde's shoulder. Patroklos staggered back, and was unable to prevent the lightning fast horizontal slash that cut across his chest next from stunning him. While his opponent was dazed, Thalias quickly plunged his sword into the blonde's midsection, then kicked him off his blade. Almost immediately afterward, he fell down on one knee in pain. Despite his desire to finish off Patroklos, he was well aware that his current injury would kill him if he did not tend to it quickly. The blonde watched from where he knelt clutching his own injuries as Thalias withdrew from their battle.

"We'll finish this later, Patroklos!" the malfested declared before disappearing from view.

Patroklos grit his teeth as he staggered back to his feet.

"Malfested scum…mark my words, Thalias, the next time we fight, I will defeat you!"

As the blonde returned to his master, he realized that Thalias had been his most challenging opponent. Somehow he could tell, sooner or later he would face the malfested again. As newly formed rivals, it would be their destiny to do battle. Yet neither warrior at that time could realize just how much would depend on their confrontation.

* * *

**A/N:** I have an important announcement to make. As you can probably tell, Thalias is going to gain more and more allies as the story progresses. However, so far I only have Achreion and two or three other OC's (all custom's made by yours truly) figured out, so I am in need of more people. If you have an idea for an OC you'd like to have fight alongside Thalias, send me a pm or say so in a review. The only requirements are that they don't have that much of a problem following a (mostly) evil protagonist. As always, please be sure to review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Midnight Raiders**

* * *

"Ow!" Thalias growled.

The young warrior was currently sitting in a chair in a small inn, with his recently gained ally tending to his wounds. Achreion rolled his eyes when Thalias flinched after he applied some stitching to his stomach wound.

"**Come now, my good man. How are you supposed to defeat the azure knight if something as trivial as this is too much for you?"** he said.

Thalias merely huffed angrily and glanced to the side, remaining silent for the rest of his treatment.

"It's not the physical injuries that hurt. Its just that that dog called Patroklos was more of a challenge than I expected. Next time we meet, I'll make sure I teach him his place."

Achreion stared at him bemusedly. _The son of Nightmare, huh?_ While the nobleman was finishing with his work, something about his patient caught his eye. Towards the center of Thalias' chest, near his heart, was a bright red scar that extended about half a foot in either direction. From what he could tell, it had been caused by some sort of small blade.

"What are you staring at?" Thalias demanded when the nobleman had yet to move from his crouched position.

"**That scar…how did you get it?"** Achreion answered, pointing at the injury.

The young warrior looked at where he was pointing. AN unwanted wave of nostalgia hit him upon seeing his injury.

"From my mother, the night she tried to kill me."

Slowly, he reached toward the injury with his right hand. Achreion looked like he was about to say something, but whatever it was disappeared when Thalias suddenly cried out in pain. Upon touching the scar, both it and his eyes began to glow an ethereal red, and without meaning to, the young warrior's right arm became malfested and deformed. This time, however, the corruption was much more serious than before. Now his arm had grown thicker and more muscular, and the veins surged with violet and black energy, a result of gathering souls. Achreion watched the young warrior fall to his knees, gripping his transformed as he panted in pain. The nobleman was taken aback, struck silent from both shock and amazement. _The son of Nightmare, indeed._

"**Are you alright, young man?"**

After struggling a few moments, Thalias rose to his feet, still gripping his arm.

"**Yes, now that the pain is subsiding."** he answered in his now distorted voice.

"**How did this happen? I did not call upon the power of Soul Edge, so why is my arm like this?"**

The nobleman went into thought. Failing to produce a result, he sighed and shrugged his shoulders.

"**I'm afraid I've no idea. The only time I've felt the power of the cursed sword was when I happened across a piece of it while I was out hunting. When I picked it up, I became like I am now."**

Noticing the sudden excitement in Thalias' eyes, he quickly added,

"**But I dropped it after that, since it was burning my hand. I went back to look for it later, but it was gone."**

The young warrior frowned in disappointment.

"**Damn. If I had gotten a hold of that shard, my power would have increased by a lot more. I guess I'll have to stick with harvesting souls for now."**

The young warrior held his malfested arm up and turned it around in front of him.

"**Judging from how it looks compared to the first time I called it out, my efforts have not been in vain. I feel at least twice as strong as back then."**

Moments after he had spoken, his arm reverted back to its original form, and the glow vanished from his eyes.

"If only I could figure out how to trigger it, then I could call upon this power anytime I wanted."

"**Well, I'm sure you'll figure it out sooner or later. For now, how about we get some rest? We've got a long trip to the south tomorrow."**

The young warrior shot Achreion a look of confusion.

"Why there?"

"**Before I was disowned, I heard tales of a band of creatures who bear some sort of connection to Soul Edge. Perhaps you could convince them to join us? Considering their numbers, it would certainly make the recruiting process much faster."**

Thalias nodded in agreement.

"Not a bad idea, Achreion. Very well, we'll seek out these creatures tomorrow."

Having settled on a course of action, the two malfested retired for the night.

* * *

The next day, the pair set out across eastern Europe, picking up rumors of the mysterious band of creatures everywhere they stopped. According to the rumors, they were lizard like in appearance, and their leader was bigger and more skilled in combat than the rest. One night after fruitlessly pursuing an investigation into a cave in the wilderness, Thalias' growing frustration was beginning to get to him.

"This is pointless. At this rate, we'll never find them!" the young warrior yelled, kicking over a stone in his anger.

"Dammit! If only we had more to go on than their appearance! They're so unpredictable that we can't even follow the pattern of their raids!"

"Then perhaps you are asking the wrong people for information." said a familiar voice.

Sanguine emerged from the shadows of a nearby tree, almost appearing to be a part of the shadows themselves. The hooded malfested approached with their usual sinister smile shining from beneath their hood. Thalias scowled at them.

"If you were there the whole time, why didn't you say anything?"

"Because, son of Nightmare, I find it amusing to watch you struggle."

Achreion stared confusedly at the newcomer for a moment before turning to Thalias.

"**Young man, who is that? I sense a most sinister aura about them."** he whispered.

"This is Sanguine, the informant I told you about the other day."

"**Is that so? I expected them to be…taller."**

"And I expected a nobleman to have better manners, Achreion." Sanguine chided lightly.

"Enough! Am I to assume that you have information that can help me with my current task?" Thalias reprimanded.

"Blunt and to the point, as usual. Yes, I believe I know something that may be of use to you."

"**Then by all means, speak!"**

The hooded malfested turned its gaze to the nobleman, and though their face was veiled, Achreion could feel a deathly glare weighing upon him.

"I answer to those I deem worthy of my time, not underlings."

"**Underling?! Why you-"**

Sanguine turned back to Thalias.

"A little to the north of here is a wide and barren hillside laden with the corpses and weapons of fallen warriors. Rumor has it a pair of monstrous fighters frequents the area, and that the leader of the creatures you seek has an understanding of sorts with them. If anyone can point you in the right direction, it will be them. But be warned, they are malfested like us, and powerful at that. I doubt they will be inclined to negotiation."

The young warrior smirked in wicked excitement.

"I see…so I just have to deal with them in the old fashioned way. Works for me."

Achreion muttered something along the lines of 'arrogant youth' while Sanguine smiled in approval.

"You truly are the azure knight's child. Well, that is all I have to share, so I will leave you to your task."

"Just a moment, Sanguine."

The hooded malfested paused. Thalias narrowed his eyes as his expression became serious.

"I want you to keep an eye on a man called Patroklos. He could spell trouble for us later on."

Sanguine nodded.

"As you wish."

And with that, the hooded malfested backed away into the shadows, and vanished. As soon as he was sure Sanguine was gone, Achreion turned back to Thalias.

"**Quite the mysterious type, that one. Are they a man or a woman? They spoke in a manner that could belong to either."**

The young warrior shook his head and sighed.

"No idea. From what they've told me, Sanguine isn't even their real name. I'm starting to get a little tired of all these secrets, but it seems like the only to get on that bastard's good side is to appease them. Besides, Sanguine's intel is reliable, so until it steers me wrong I'll follow their advice."

Achreion rose an eyebrow in amusement. _Perhaps he is not quite as barbaric as I thought._

"**Very well, if that is your choice then I shall follow it. Now, should we turn in for the night before we confront our brethren?" **

"No, we'll go now. The hour is late, so they're bound to be about. The sooner we face them, the better. And besides…"

The young warrior turned his gaze toward the night sky, grinning with cruel intent.

"I welcome the challenge of a strong opponent. I'll teach them their place!"

The nobleman sighed and followed Thalias as they began to walk toward their new destination. Sometime later, they arrived at the hillside. By now, the moon was full and shining brightly, illuminating the barren landscape. Thalias looked around as he and Achreion slowly made their way along the hillside, keeping an eye out for anything that might resemble the two malfested.

"Well, what do we have here?" said a reckless sounding young man's voice.

"**It appears more wanderers have entered our domain."** said a cold and ruthless slightly older voice.

Thalias looked up at the top of the hill to see two hellish figures looking down on them. One of them was a man whose only features were blood red skeletal hands and a skull with large black horns that stuck out of his thuggish red and black attire, the torso of which resembled a ribcage. (think the top half of Zwei's second costume mixed with the lower half of his first, and colored red and black). He held a red bladed sword with a skull shaped hand guard and a snake like blade in one hand, and a buckler resembling a skull with horns in the other. Next to him stood a taller man whose skin was as deep a blue as the demonic armor he wore over most of his body. He wore an eyeless helmet with a pair of white ram horns protruding from his head, had four blue bat like wings protruding from his back, and rested an enormous greatsword with a blue blade on his shoulder. Thalias narrowed his eyes at the figures as he drew Dusk's Talon.

"A red skeleton and a blue devil…how absurd. I take it you two are the ones who frequent this area?" he said.

"**Correct."** answered the devil.

"And who the hell are you? Some prick with a sword just waltzing about into other people's turf like he's the freakin' king of the world?" added the skeleton.

"I am Thalias, a malfested like yourselves, and I am no king…" then he added with a smirk. "Not yet, at least."

"**What is your business here, 'Thalias'? We do not take kindly to trespassers in our territory."**

"I have sought the two of you out because I require information you possess. Tell me, where is the band of creatures that passes through this area?"

"You got an issue with them or something?"

"That's none of your concern."

The skeleton and the devil shot each other a glance. They nodded in unison, then leapt from their perch atop the hill so that they were standing before the nobleman and the young warrior. Both of the hellish figures readied their weapons.

"Sorry guys, but it sounds to us like you plan on taking out our scaly friends. Problem is, since people fear our charming malfested faces, the only ones who'll lend us any support are the lizards. And if anything were to happen to them, then we'd be screwed." began the skeleton.

"**Therefore,"** continued the devil. **"You must be eliminated before you can cause them any harm. Whether or not you're one of us makes no difference."**

"That's how it is. Nothing personal, fellas."

Thalias smirked and readied his cutlass, Achreion doing the same with his hidden sword.

"How about we make a deal?" the young warrior said. "If we beat you, then you must join in my quest as one of my allies. If not, you can do with us as you please."

The skeleton's eternal grin seemed to widen.

"Sounds good to me! Let's do this!"

Favoring the thrill of a strong opponent over common sense, Thalias charged sword first toward the devil. The blue malfested merely huffed in annoyance as he effortlessly blocked his opponent's much smaller blade with his greatsword.

"**Fool. Just like the others who came before, you will die."**

"Heh, we'll see about that!"

The young warrior shoved the devil's weapon aside before unleashing a quick trio of slashes. The blue malfested blocked two of the strikes, and ducked under the last one. While he was crouched on the ground, he suddenly thrust his sword skyward in a charge, catching Thalias on the end of it and carrying him a few feet before he was flung to the ground with a quick swish of the greatsword. The young warrior quickly rolled to the side as a deadly blow crashed into the ground beside him. Rising to his feet, Thalias rushed toward the devil by doing a spin attack with both his feet and cutlass. The quick attack caught the blue malfested by surprise, and he found himself knocked back. Quickly recovering, the devil ran toward Thalias and swung out with one arm, catching his opponent by the scruff of his cloak's collar. Before the young warrior could try to free himself, the devil emitted a surge of dark power from his body, blowing Thalias out of his grasp and onto the ground. The young warrior grit his teeth somewhat before rising once again. His opponent was definitely a strong one, that was for sure. However, like with all warriors, he had to have some kind of weakness. Thalias watched the devil charge toward him, waiting for the opportune moment to strike. If he guessed correctly, the blue malfested's weapon had a price to pay for its raw power and size: speed. Particularly, recovery speed. Just as the devil did a powerful vertical slash with his greatsword, Thalias stepped around the attack and, adding a quick surge of power to temporarily ignite his blade, brought Dusk's Talon down on the blue malfested's shoulder. The devil growled in pain as he was both burned and cut at the same time, and reeled back as Thalias withdrew his now extinguished blade. Seizing the momentary pause, the young warrior shot a glance over at his companion. Achreion was locked in series of rapid moving strikes and kicks with the skeleton, whose attack patterns resembled that of Patroklos. The red malfested ran toward the nobleman, then quickly ducked under a strike that went for his head.

"You'll never…" he started. "…defeat me!"

The skeleton arched himself over the ground, slashing upwardly with his sword, then with his foot as he resumed fighting stance. Achreion staggered back a bit, having had his arm cut and his stomach kicked. The red malfested made to charge again, but was swiftly knocked back as the nobleman did a lightning fast sweep with his sword. Satisfied that his companion was in no immediate danger of failing, Thalias turned back to his own battle, just in time for an armored fist to slam into his face in two rapid punches. The young warrior fell flat on his back, growling in pain. He rose back to his feet just in time to stop the devil from cutting him in half. Thalias staggered back, panting in exhaustion. His chest still hurt from where the blue malfested had penetrated during that sudden charge. The young warrior growled in frustration as he felt around his injured chest, unintentionally running his hand over his scar in the process. The devil backed away in shock as his opponent suddenly cried out in pain, a tremendous amount of dark energy radiating from his body as his eyes took on an ethereal red glow and his arm transformed into its malfested state.

"**What the-"**

Thalias didn't give him a chance to finish as he suddenly charged forward with great speed, sending a pair of powerful upward strikes that launched his opponent into the air and struck him again while in midair. Just as the devil landed back on the ground, the young warrior did a super human leap into the air towards him, and brought his cutlass down. The blue malfested yelled in pain as the powerful blow split apart his chest plate and cut into his torso. He then felt the tip of Thalias' sword against his chin, and gazed up toward the young warrior glaring down at him, dark power burning in his eyes.

"**Yield, malfested."** he demanded in a deep and powerful voice.

Though he could not see through his helmet, the devil could feel the power emanating from his opponent, and though he hated to admit it, it frightened him. Reluctantly, he nodded at Thalias. Then, he turned toward the skeleton.

"**Diablos, enough. We've lost."** he said.

The red malfested turned toward him. Seeing the current state of his ally, he sighed regretfully and dropped his weapons.

"Damn, I was having a blast. You alright, Azrios?"

The devil nodded.

"**My wounds are not too deep. I will survive."**

Out of respect for his opponent, Thalias helped Azrios to his feet. After admitting defeat, the pair of hellish figures introduced themselves.

"**I am called Azrios, the azure devil."**

"The name's Diablos, the crimson skull. I'm his younger brother."

"Azrios and Diablos, how aptly named." Thalias noted, now back to normal.

"**Indeed. Well, we are not ones to go back on our word, and you won, so we will show you where to find Aeon and his band."**

"**Aeon?"** asked Achreion.

Diablos nodded.

"The leader of the lizardmen. His name is Aeon."

"But I thought lizardmen couldn't speak?" inquired Thalias.

"They can't talk, but they can understand our words. He drew his name in the dirt for us one time."

"I see…where can I find this 'Aeon'?"

Azrios pointed to a cluster of hills leading down to a cave with water flowing inside of it.

"**There, that's where he and his kind hide out after a raid. I ask you again, do you intend to kill him?"**

"Not unless he listens to what I have to say. I'm looking for warriors brave or daring enough to join me in my quest."

"**And what quest would that be?"**

Thalias smirked devilishly as he answered.

"To destroy my father, the azure knight, and to become the new master of Soul Edge. Any who would join me will become the masters of the world I will create as the new dark king. The two of you have shown exceptional skill in combat, so much that I found myself unable to defeat you without drawing on my powers. What say you? Will you join me?"

The brothers walked away a bit to discuss their course of action. A few moments later, they returned to Thalias and Achreion.

"**We have decided that we will join you in your quest, for we also wish to see the end of Nightmare. He will pay for turning us into these…monsters…However, we have a condition."** Azrios began.

"While we're impressed by your skills and acknowledge your power, we still can't ignore that you're the azure knight's son. We want you to prove your strength to us one more time." Diablos finished.

"Very well, then. What would you have me do?"

"**Aeon will not obey anyone of close ties to Nightmare, so the only way you'll get him to listen to you is by defeating him in combat. His followers only obey the strongest, after all. Defeat Aeon, and you'll have won us over."**

Thalias chuckled arrogantly.

"Is that all?"

* * *

Shortly, the four malfested made their way to the watery cavern that served as the lair of the lizardmen. The cursed beasts were wandering around aimlessly, growling at each other and practicing their fighting techniques. The instant the four entered their domain, the lizardmen stopped everything they were doing and stared at them. Thalias looked among the crowd of beasts for any that matched the description of Aeon, but all were just as primitive and brainless as the next.

"Where is the creature known as Aeon? I wish to face him in battle! Bring forth Aeon!" shouted the young warrior.

The lizardmen looked about at each other in confusion until a deep and mighty roar bellowed from the back of the cave. Slowly, they began to part, revealing a lizardman taller and more monstrous looking than the rest. Aeon glared at the four intruders through hate filled reptilian eyes. He had shining blue scales that covered his hide and tail, and a segmented pale yellow underbelly covered by what little armor he wore. Red spikes adorned his head and back, travelling down the length of his long tail, and in his hands he held a pair of wicked looking axes. Thalias was about to walk toward the beastly creature, when he felt a skeletal hand on his shoulder.

"Aeon is no pushover. Even with that power of yours, you'll still have a hell of a time fighting him." Diablos warned.

Thalias nodded, then proceeded toward Aeon. The chief lizardman growled and walked to meet him. Once they were face to face, Thalias saw that Aeon towered over him by at least half a foot. Even under the beast's unflinching gaze, the young warrior felt no fear. He stared straight into Aeon's eyes as he spoke.

"You know what I am, don't you monster?"

Aeon growled in response. Thalias took it for a 'yes'.

"Then I'll keep this brief. I want you and your kind to become part of my army, and to help me defeat my father. What say you?"

This time, the chief lizardman roared violently in his face. Thalias blinked a few times, but remained unfazed. He figured the roar to be something along the lines of 'fuck you'.

"I thought as much. Then I shall fight you for ownership of these creatures. How does that sound?"

Aeon seemed to go into thought at this. A few moments later, he growled at one of his followers. A lizardman went out of sight for a moment, then returned carrying something small, metal, and with a red glow. Thalias recognized it immediately as a shard of Soul Edge. He quirked an eyebrow at the chief lizardman.

"Raising the stakes a bit, eh? Fine by me. I'll kick your scaly ass, then take that shard and make you my bitch for the rest of my quest. Now, where will we duel?"

Aeon growled angrily and tilted his head to the side. Thalias followed his gaze to a small stone platform sitting in the middle of a deep pool of water. The young warrior nodded his head in understanding, then followed the chief lizardman toward the arena. Once atop the platform, which was about 20ft across in every direction, the fighters took their positions. Aeon clapped his axes and roared in preparation. Thalias only smirked and drew his cutlass in response.

"This fight will be a pleasure."

(Battle theme: Brutal Instinct (Aeon's theme))

Thalias struck first, sliding into thrust position before doing a quick stab and slash at the chief lizardman. Aeon blocked both attacks, then growled as he swung his axes in a series of savage chops and slashes. Thalias struggled to defend against the strikes, as they carried superhuman strength behind each blow. Recovering, the young warrior then did a low sweep with his leg to knock Aeon off balance, then followed it up with an upward slash. The chief lizardman reeled back, snarled, then crouched low to the ground. Thalias paused in confusion, unsure whether to interpret the action as a sign of defeat or not. He discovered the meaning behind the odd stance just as Aeon rocketed forward head first, slamming into the young warrior's midsection and sending him to the ground. Before Thalias could recover, Aeon knelt down beside him, bit onto his shoulder, then spun them both into the air to once again slam the young warrior into the ground. Cringing in pain, Thalias quickly rose to his feet and struck a defensive stance as the chief lizardman prepared to strike again. _Such raw strength! Diablos wasn't kidding, this guy is no pushover._ he thought while Aeon charged at him. Thalias waited for the chief lizardman to enter striking range before doing a lightning fast horizontal strike that ended with him turning around to watch Aeon collapse to the floor in sheer pain and shock. The chief lizardman roared furiously as he rose again, this time doing a spiral uppercut to knock Thalias into the air. While still airborne, Aeon suddenly sprouted a pair of angelic wings that he used to propel himself in a downward head-butt that sent the young warrior down once again shortly before they disappeared. Gritting his teeth in anger, Thalias charged toward the chief lizardman as he rose. Upon coming in contact with Aeon, the young warrior did a quick triple uppercut slash that launched the chief lizardman back and onto the ground. For a moment, Aeon lay motionless.

"What's the matter? That all you got?" taunted an exhausted Thalias.

As if response, the chief lizardman burst from the ground in a barrel role, nearly knocking the young warrior off his feet. Rising back to his feet, Aeon clapped the pommels of his axes against Thalias' head, stunning him long enough for the double upper slash that followed to land. Just as the young warrior fell to the ground, the chief lizardman unleashed a terrible roar, just before doing another barrel role charge to knock Thalias into place so that he wouldn't be able to dodge the burst of fire that erupted from his mouth soon after. The young warrior staggered back to his feet, exhausted and slightly burned. _Dammit! At this rate I'll never beat him! It can't be helped, I need Soul Edge's power! But how do I call upon it?_ he thought while launching into another exchange of blows. After reaching into his memories of when the power within him was released, he realized a commonality that occurred. Nearly every time his power came out, he had touched the scar on his chest. Glaring at Aeon after gaining some breathing room, he decided to test his theory. Thalias quickly placed his hand over the scar, and released an inhuman roar as the scar and his eyes began to glow. His right arm entered its malfested state, and in doing so furthered the corruption on his sword. The dark tendrils upon it grew and extended along nearly the entire length of Dusk's Talon, widening the blade and giving it an ethereal glow. The young warrior smiled in grim satisfaction as his injuries vanished, finishing his transformation.

"**I see…so that's how it works. Now…"** he held his sword at the ready as it growled with dark power. **"Where were we?"**

Stunned by the sudden change in his enemy's appearance, Aeon could only watch as Thalias rushed toward him at an insane speed, delivering first a bone shattering right hook with his malfested arm, then cutting a broad gash across the chief lizardman's chest that spewed forth blood. Aeon staggered back with a yelp as his armor broke apart and his ribcage shattered. The chief lizardman then roared in pure rage as he desperately swung his axes in every direction he could, trying to overwhelm the young warrior with his raw strength. Thalias either blocked or dodged every blow with a minimum of effort. Seizing a momentary pause in his opponent's onslaught, the young warrior first did a broad horizontal slash at chest height, then quickly changed direction to deliver two more that slashed at the chief lizardman's knees. Caught by surprise, Aeon helplessly took the full force of the attacks, and fell flat on his back near the edge of the platform. Just as he tried to get up to try again, he suddenly found himself being gripped by the back of the head, just before his face was plunged beneath the water surrounding the platform. The chief lizardman thought he was about to suffocate, when suddenly his head was pulled back out of the water. As he gasped for breath, Thalias tilted his head to stare straight into his eyes.

"**Now yield, monster. The battle is mine!"** he commanded.

Aeon weakly roared with what strength he had in response. Thalias took it to mean something along the lines of 'Never!'. The young warrior then smiled maliciously, making the chief lizardman experience a rare sense of fear.

"**So be it, then."**

Using his enhanced strength, Thalias hurled Aeon high into the air. As the chief lizardman began to descend, he raised his sword in preparation. Just before Aeon hit the ground, Thalias swung, decapitating him. The chief lizardman's limp body bounced off of the platform and into the waters surrounding it, slowly turning the water red with blood as it sank beneath the surface. The young warrior then picked up Aeon's head from where it lay and held it high for all to see. The other lizardmen, as well as Diablos and Azrios, stared in stunned silence. Achreion merely shook his head and smiled thoughtfully. _As expected of the azure knight's son, a monster among monsters._

"**Look well upon this head, insolent beasts! This is what awaits all those who stand in my way! Now, swear your allegiance to me, or I shall send you to join your former master in the pits of Hell!"** Thalias cried.

The lizardmen glanced at each other for a few moments, then, as one, ran like frightened children from the cave. The young warrior frowned as the last of the beasts fled. None had remained. He closed his eyes, sighing in frustration.

"**Bunch of cowards. Who needs them, anyway?"**

With an angry growl, he tossed Aeon's head to join the rest of its body in the waters of the cavern. After getting back onto the main area of the cavern, Thalias approached the devil brothers.

"**Do you require any more proof of my strength?"**

"Nope, we**'re good." **they answered in unison.

"**I figured as much."**

The young warrior then retrieved the shard of Soul Edge the lizardmen had left behind. Upon touching it, he felt a tremendous surge of dark power course through him, along with something else…

_**You who desire power…give yourself to me…**_

The voice was so distorted that he could barely understand it, but it appeared to be male in origin. What was more, it seemed to come from somewhere inside of him. He waited a few more moments for the voice to continue, but it did not speak again. Deciding he had had enough excitement for one day, the young warrior and his dark allies departed the cavern.

* * *

Sometime later, they made their way to the outskirts of France, to an area populated mostly by those of poorer stature. According to Achreion, there was an old mansion in these parts that was currently unoccupied, and could serve as their base of operations for the time being. While they headed inside the building, Thalias took a quick glance at his arms. Almost immediately after the mysterious voice had spoken to him, his left arm had become nearly as malfested as his right. Even after the rest of his body returned to normal, his arms remained in their transformed stated. Fortunately, the corruption was not so great that he couldn't conceal it beneath his clothing, if barely. _The closer we become to the cursed sword, the more we lose our humanity. _Sanguine's words replayed in his head. Not soon after the thought entered his mind, the sudden sound of steel being drawn drew his attention to the top of a grand staircase leading to the second floor. There stood a man who looked around 20 years old with tan skin who wore a black headband with a silver frame, a black leather shirt with red sleeves with a body holster on top, black leather pants, a belt with a silver buckle, golden armlets, black shoulder pads, and black cuff boots with a red trim. In his hand he held a rapier with a black blade and a blood red hilt.

"Who dares enter House Sorel?" he said in a stern tone. "This place belongs to my master, and I shall not allow anyone to defile it while he is absent!"

Thalias stepped forward, sword already partway drawn.

"Is that so? Well sorry to tell you this, but we need a place to stay, and we have no intention of leaving here anytime soon!"

"Then you shall die!"

The young warrior and the tan swordsman sprang into a fierce duel. Thalias was clearly stronger, but the other man was expertly skilled with his rapier, and what he lacked in power he made up for in speed. When about ten minutes had passed, and neither of them could best the other, they decided to call it a draw. Thalias explained to the man, who called himself Varryn, his purpose for coming here and the quest he had taken upon himself. In return, Varryn explained that he was searching for a man named Raphael Sorel, his teacher and the owner of the mansion. Since Raphael had been seen dueling the azure knight on several occasions, Varryn chose to join with Thalias and his allies.

"Until I either find my master, or become strong enough to defeat you." he finished.

Thalias nodded in respect.

"Fair enough."

"**Now that we've found a place to stay,"** Achreion interjected. **"I thought we should address another important issue."**

"Meaning…?" Thalias inquired.

"**Now that there are at least five of us-six if you include Sanguine-I believe it would be proper to come up with a name for ourselves."**

The others nodded in approval, and began to speculate possible names. As they talked, the local bell tower suddenly rang out.

"Dang, its already midnight!" Diablos noted.

Thalias scratched his chin as an idea entered his head all of a sudden.

"Midnight…I like the sound of that."

He turned around to face the others.

"I believe I have found our name, gentleman."

"**What have you decided?"** Azrios asked.

Thalias drew his sword and pointed it toward the heavens.

"From this moment on, we shall be known as the 'Midnight Raiders'!"

The others thought about the idea, and decided it didn't sound so bad. They each drew their respective weapons and raised them along with Thalias'. The young warrior grinned with satisfaction.

"Let all who dare oppose us tremble before our name!"

Not far away, Sanguine was watching the group from atop the rafters. A grim smile spread across their face before they vanished into the shadows. All was proceeding as planned...

* * *

**A/N: **First off, special thanks to Matrix7o6 for submitting his OC, Varryn. (don't worry, he'll get more screen time later on) All other OC's are owned by me. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Don't forget to submit more OC's people, because I need them! (all my original character ideas are used up, no joke) Seriously, I'm on my knees here! Lol as always don't forget to review and follow the rest of this story! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: The Eternal Swords**

* * *

Thalias groaned as he sat down on a bench in House Sorel's expansive courtyard. For the past couple of weeks, he had been training nonstop with his allies in order to hone his newfound strength and power. He had become well attuned to the tactics of the devil brothers and Achreion, but he still had trouble whenever Varryn was his opponent. The tan skinned man was surprisingly flexible, allowing him to make deadly use of his rapier, named Blessed Blood after its deep crimson blade. Because his movements were quick and fluid, the young warrior found Varryn to be utterly unpredictable, and thus could form no strategy against him other than his usual method of brute force. Because his duels were always intense, he had gained quite a few injuries and vastly overexerted himself, so as of this evening Thalias decided it would be best to take a few days to recover. While his allies chatted and sparred, his gaze shifted to the hooded figure reclining against the wall a few feet away. Though they watched from the sidelines, Sanguine had yet to engage him in any kind of training. Feeling doubtful about the hooded figure's promise, Thalias rose and walked up to them.

"Sanguine." he began.

"Yes, son of Nightmare?" they answered.

"I've gained twice as much power as before, and I have now gathered some of the strongest warriors I have ever seen. Also, I've managed to figure out the trigger for my powers, and can call upon it whenever I desire. I achieved all of this without a single lesson from you. Do you really intend to train me, or are you just a coward afraid of my strength?"

Sanguine paused at this, and the young warrior could sense an aura of resentment emanating from beneath their hood. The hooded figure detached from the wall and tilted their head somewhat in Thalias' direction.

"You have some nerve, _boy,_ to address me in such a manner. Try using that primitive brain of yours and think on what you've just said. Throughout your travels, who was it that led you on the correct path? Who do you think spread the rumor about the lizardmen? Who do you think personally set foot into dangerous territory to see if a pair of malfested brothers would make for a decent challenge? Well?"

Ignoring the insult to his intelligence, Thalias thought about the hooded figure's words and soon realized their meaning. Everything he'd done up until this point had been under Sanguine's influence. Even if they were not directly involved in his battles, the hooded figure had been training him, honing his skills from afar. Had it not been for Sanguine, he would never have gotten to where he was now.

"I understand. Pardon my rudeness, Sanguine." he said.

The hooded figure gave a low grunt in frustration.

"I suppose I can overlook it this time. However, I'd like to make something perfectly clear…"

Without warning, Sanguine suddenly lashed out with their malfested arm and grabbed Thalias by his collar, lifting him a solid foot and a half off the ground. The young warrior stared in shock, surprised to see someone at least half a head shorter than himself effortlessly lifting him off his feet. Sanguine turned their head all the way around to glare at Thalias through bright red eyes.

"I do not have, nor have I ever had any reason to fear you. If I so wished, I could end your miserable existence here and now. But lucky for you, son of Nightmare, I am interested in seeing what sort of dark lord you will become, so I will continue to provide my information. And as for training, I will teach you when I decide you're ready. But as anyone can see…"

Sanguine withdrew their hand, but Thalias remained hovering above the ground. The hooded figure then lightly tapped their fist against his midsection, and in the next instant the young warrior was embedded into the nearest wall.

"You are far from ready."

Had he not managed to temporarily activate his powers, Thalias would have collapsed in a lifeless heap. Instead, he only fell to his knees, gripping a dislocated shoulder. Despite the tremendous pain the injury gave him he managed to smirk up at Sanguine.

"Looks that way…for now. As soon as I get strong enough to fight you on even terms, you're gonna be begging for mercy. You can count on that."

The hooded figure chuckled as they helped him to his feet.

"We shall see, _boy_."

Before the conversation could continue, there came a loud pounding on the gates to the mansion courtyard. All turned to see the silhouette of a tall man who must have been at least 6'4" slowly lifting pushing open the large gates that prevented outsiders from entering with his bare hands. The man grunted in a tone that seemed part animal as he forced the barrier open. The man then proceeded to casually stroll towards the group of malfested.

"**Who the devil would be coming here at this hour?"** said Achreion.

"I don't know, but whoever they are they're definitely not human. No normal person could pry open those gates." noted Diablos.

"Then they must be exceptionally strong…" Thalias thought out loud, stroking his chin.

"Whoever they are, they owe Raphael a new gate." Varryn growled.

Noticing the tan man reach for his rapier, Thalias put a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't attack just yet. I want to have a few words with them."

Varryn nodded, but kept a fierce look as he and the young warrior walked to meet the intruder. Upon entering the moonlight, they found that the tall man was surprisingly lanky, yet muscular at the same time. He had a pair of wicked looking axes resting at his sides, but his most unusual feature was his head. In place of a man, there was the head of a great wolf with snow white fur that gazed down at the others with dark brown eyes. Quirking an eyebrow in interest, Thalias was the first to speak.

"To who do we owe the honor of this late visit?" he began.

The wolfman directed his gaze at the young warrior.

"I am called Myles, Myles Cross." he answered in a mature sounding voice.

"Well then Myles, for what reason have you come to this place?"

"I have heard rumors about a slowly growing gang of malfested determined to dispose of the azure knight. I see great potential in the chaos you all will bring, so I thought I'd stop by and ask to join your ranks so I can get in on the action."

Thalias quirked a brow in interest.

"Oh? You sought us out on your own will? Now that is interesting. Usually I have to seek out my allies and show them their place before they join me."

"Then I consider myself honored to be the first. I take it you're the leader of this gang?"

"I am. My name is Thalias, son of Nightmare."

A glimmer of hatred shined in Myles' eyes at this. Unfazed, Thalias continued with his introduction.

"I understand how you might feel about that, but I assure you I hold no loyalty to the azure knight. My father is an insolent bastard who deserves to be wiped clean from this world, and I will see to it that he meets that fate. He will pay for what he has done. However, I lack the strength to take on his armies on my own, so I require the assistance of others."

The young warrior gestured to his comrades.

"These men (and one of unspecified gender) are the best warriors I have ever encountered. They have shown me they possess the strength needed to face Nightmare and his lackeys. Knowing all of this, do you still wish to join us, and become one of the Midnight Raiders?"

The wolfman seemed to go into thought for a moment before nodding in response.

"Of course. If I join with you, then I can slaughter more insolent fools and spread destruction on this land. The azure knight stands in the way of that, so he must be destroyed. If you would accept me as your ally, I will gladly raise my blades to aid your goal."

Thalias smirked bemusedly.

"Well said. But, there is still one more thing I require before I will allow you to join us."

"And what would that be?"

"Like I said before, all of my current allies showed me their strength firsthand to earn my respect. While I am impressed by your dramatic entrance, I still require evidence of your fighting skills. I would spar with you myself, but as you can see I have been pushing my body well beyond its limits and am in no condition to fight."

Myles nodded. "I understand. So then, who will I be sparring with?"

"How about me?" Varryn said, stepping forward to glare straight at the wolfman. "You've got quite the nerve to go around breaking down people's front gates."

"Well I wouldn't have had to do that if you hadn't locked it so tightly."

"You could have knocked!"

"….oops."

"Uh, Varryn? Are you sure you want to do that? I mean, you saw what he did to the gate…" Diablos noted worriedly.

"Maybe so, but it is not always the strongest warrior who emerges victorious…"

The tan fighter drew Blessed Blood and swung around in a few elegant arcs.

"It is the warrior with the most skill."

Myles drew his axes and took a stance. The two fighters stood facing each other for a few moments, then sprang into battle. Varryn chose to initially let the wolfman go on the offensive so that he could ascertain the kinds of attacks he would be dealing with. Myles struck with superhuman strength, and seemed to rely on his brute strength. The tan fighter smirked as he dodged a quick barrage of vertical chops, just before countering with a lightning fast horizontal slash followed by a quick thrust at his opponent's knees. Myles cringed slightly, but shrugged off the pain. Just as Varryn was about to do a running charge with his rapier, the wolfman swept him off the ground with his axes, using them to hold him above his head. Myles then rapidly slammed the pommels of his axes into the tan fighter's stomach, then flung him back to the ground. Varryn grunted lightly as he rose to his feet. Myles took a broad swipe at his head, but he countered it by leaning back and thrusting his sword into the wolfman's side. Myles retracted and responded by stomping his foot onto that of Varryn's. The tan fighter felt as though a small boulder had fallen upon his foot, and backed away as he prepared to strike again. Myles took another broad slash at his opponent, only to have Varryn side step the attack and launch him into the air with a fast upward kick and slash. Quickly rising to his feet, the wolfman first bashed his opponent's knee with the flat of his axe, then sent them flying back with a powerful head-butt. Myles and Varryn continued to exchange blows in this manner until Thalias had decided he was satisfied with the former's skills. By this time Myles was covered in cuts and slashes, and Varryn was struggling to stand with a nearly broken body. Smiling with dark pride, the young warrior shook hands with the wolfman.

"Welcome to the Midnight Raiders, Myles Cross."

The wolfman nodded in thanks, then followed the others as they headed inside the mansion. As they were walking, Sanguine couldn't help but notice a devious smile of sorts form on Myles' lips, as if he had just succeeded in some scheme. The hooded figure decided to ignore it for now, and to only act if the wolfman revealed himself to have goals conflicting with that of Thalias. After most of the gang had retired, Thalias sat with Sanguine in the study, listening to the most recent news the hooded figure had to offer.

"I'm afraid I have nothing to go on regarding the whereabouts of your father, so I apologize if that's what you were hoping for." Sanguine began.

Thalias sighed in mild frustration, then motioned for them to continue.

"However, I have some important information concerning the one called Patroklos and yourself. It seems that he has finally figured out he was being used as a tool by Graf Dumas, and has since left the Hungarian army. He's recently joined the rouge group known as Schwarzwind, under the command of a veteran knight by the name of Siegfried. And after earning Siegfried's trust, he was given a weapon that could spell ruin for your plans…"

"A weapon? What kind of weapon?"

Sanguine's eyes narrowed as their expression became deadly serious.

"The weapon that was forged to destroy Soul Edge…the legendary spirit sword, Soul Calibur."

Thalias gave the hooded figure a look of shock and confusion.

"Soul Calibur? What the hell is that?"

Sanguine paused for a moment, then sighed.

"It's a long story, but I'll try to keep it brief. Long ago, the hero king Algol became the first man to master Soul Edge and avoid being corrupted by its power. However, his son became mad with jealousy, and took the cursed sword, corrupting himself in the process. Algol was forced to fight his son, and though he shattered Soul Edge, could not avoid killing him in the process. Wracked with grief, the hero king took a remaining shard of the cursed sword and purified it into the spirit sword Soul Calibur, so that when Soul Edge returned, mankind would have a weapon with which to face the cursed sword. Since that day, the two swords have constantly been at war with each other, always driving the course of history, always forever changing the lives of those they choose as their wielders. Every time the swords resurface, Soul Calibur has proven victorious."

"And you're saying that Patroklos…that bastard who calls himself a holy warrior…he has Soul Calibur?"

"It would appear so, yes."

Thalias chuckled darkly at this.

"Soul Calibur must be incredibly foolish then, to have selected him as its wielder."

"Indeed. However, there is more that you should know about the twin swords and their wielders."

The young warrior nodded in compliance.

"Over the course of history, the wielders of the cursed sword have been given the name of 'Nightmare', and they are bound by fate to do battle with the one chosen by the spirit sword. In my investigation, I have come to the conclusion that the current Nightmare has not revealed himself because he is at this time too weak to seek out his most hated enemy. In addition, the spirit sword has yet to awaken its full potential, so perhaps there is something it sees something in Patroklos that would make him worthy enough to wield it. If you were to become the new wielder of Soul Edge, then by the will of fate you would have to face Soul Calibur's wielder in a battle to the death."

Thalias couldn't help but grin maliciously at this.

"Is that so? Well then, all the more reason to get rid of my bastard of a father. The world will be better without him anyway."

Sanguine gave their signature sinister smile in recognition.

"As determined as always, I see. I'm glad to know that you are dedicated to your cause, not many people would be so enthusiastic about such an undertaking."

"Well not many people are the son of Nightmare, either. If that is all the information you have for me, Sanguine, then I will be heading to bed. I need to rest and rebuild my strength."

The young warrior stood up and turned to leave.

"Very well, but before you do there is something else regarding Patroklos you should know."

Thalias stopped at the doorway to the study to listen.

"Apparently your rival is searching for his long lost sister, a girl by the name of Pyrrha. From what I've found out, she is often regarded as a 'bringer of woe' due to the unfortunate fact that tragedy seems to follow her everywhere she goes. But that is beside the point. What I really want to tell you is that for quite some time now, she has been seen travelling with a malfested woman, one who wields a ring blade. You know of whom I speak."

Slowly, the young warrior turned around to face Sanguine with eyes wide with shock.

"Mother…"

* * *

**A/N: **Myles Cross was created by my good friend Holy Writer. Thanks again for this awesome OC! I apologize for making this one a little short, but I felt a change of pace from the constant fighting was needed. As always, please submit any ideas for OC's in a pm or review, preferably female OC's. (Diablos: all we have are guys! We need some women who can kick ass here!) As always, please continue to read and don't forget to review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Tira**

* * *

"**Young man, calm down!"** Achreion said.

Thalias was currently walking angrily and determinedly down the hall that lead to his living quarters, face contorted into a fierce frown. The nobleman struggled to keep pace with his young ally, still trying to calm him. Ever since the previous night, the young warrior had been pacing back and forth across the study, his mind besieged by a mixture of emotions. When his allies awoke and found him still pacing, they asked what it was that troubled him. Thalias told them only what Sanguine had told him, that a malfested woman carrying a ring blade had been seen travelling with the sister of Patroklos. From what they could gather, the young warrior bore some sort of deep resentment for the woman, although why he would not say. Before they could try to pry further, Thalias had stormed out of the room and headed straight for his chambers. Ignoring Achreion's pleas to slow down, the young warrior quickly put on his armor and cloak, grabbed Dusk's Talon from where it lay, and began to march toward the front gate. Sanguine was already there waiting for him, reclining against the wall that bordered House Sorel.

"You expect to face your mother in that condition?" the hooded figure said without looking at him. "Then you are more foolish than I thought. As you are now, she can tear you apart with ease."

"Then I'll figure something out. I can't just let her get away!"

The young warrior clenched his hands into fists.

"I've waited too long for this…It's time for her to see just how strong I've become!"

"Then I'm coming with you!"

Thalias and Sanguine turned to see Varryn approaching with a fierce look in his eyes that matched that of the young warrior.

"You said you are seeking the malfested with the ring blade that's travelling with the bringer of woe, correct? Then I must accompany you."

"What reason could you possibly have to do that? Just stay out of this!"

"No! I will not back down, I will have my vengeance on that woman!"

The young warrior paused, waiting for the tan fighter to explain further. Varryn glared down at the ground, hands balling into fists.

"That woman…that malfested…she killed my mother. I don't know what she's done to anger you, but at least allow me to accompany you to find her. All I ask is a chance to exact my revenge."

Thalias went into thought for a moment, thinking carefully about the tan fighter's words.

"….Fine, you may come with me."

Varryn looked up in surprise.

"However," Thalias continued,

"You will not be permitted to harm her until I have finished my business with her. When the time is right, I will explain my reasons for pursuing her, and you will understand everything. Is that clear?"

The tan fighter paused for a moment, then renewed his determined expression and nodded. Thalias nodded back in approval, then turned to Sanguine.

"Tell the others we're going, and that they are to go out and recruit as many members as they can while we're gone. Expect us back within a week. Judging by where they were last sighted, it should take us a few days to catch up to them."

He began to walk away without waiting for a response. The hooded figure let out a deep sigh.

"….Wait a moment."

Thalias stopped and turned to see Sanguine walking up to him, muttering curses under their breath while reaching around inside their cloak. Soon enough, the hooded figure produced a small bundle of cloth. Though he could see it, the young warrior felt as though whatever was inside the cloth was calling out to him, begging to be released. A red glow pierced through the cloth for a moment, identifying itself.

"Should the malfested woman prove too much for you, use it. I was going to save this as a reward for when you became stronger, but I suppose the circumstances call for a change in plans."

Understanding just what the concealed object was, Thalias nodded and tucked the bundle away.

"Thank you, Sanguine. We'll be off, then."

"Off to where, exactly?"

Rolling his eyes and groaning in frustration, the young warrior turned to see Myles walking up to them with his hood pulled up.

"I don't suppose you have some business with our target as well?" Varryn inquired.

"No, but it sounds to me like there could be much chaos to be gleaned from this outing, so I thought I'd tag along."

Thalias growled before turning around and walking.

"Fine, whatever! Come along if you want, let's just go!"

Sanguine watched as the trio disappeared into the darkness of night, smiling sinisterly beneath their hood. _It's a bit early, but I guess I can believe in him. Just try not to die boy, because even though you don't know it…_

"You still have an important part to play."

With that, the hooded figure went inside the mansion to speak with the other Midnight Raiders.

* * *

Amidst a city filled with dead warriors, a lone girl sat crying. She was young, had golden blonde hair that shone in the light of the fires around her, and was single handedly responsible for all of the dead warriors, including the one laying in front of her.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…" she said as she wept.

A high pitched laugh laced with insanity caused her to look up at a slowly approaching feminine figure scantily clad in green and dark blue. Tira smiled maliciously as she spun Eisern Drossel around her hand, effectively slicing a corpse in half.

"Not bad, Pyrrha! Not bad at all!" she said in a dark tone.

The young girl had been Tira's project for the past 17 years. Since abducting her at an early age, the ring blade wielder had secretly manipulated Pyrrha's life in order to forge her into a worthy wielder for Soul Edge. Thanks to Tira's efforts earlier in the girl's life, the daughter of the holy warrior Sophitia was a malfested, though Pyrrha herself appeared to be human. This, along with the vast number of lives the girl had taken under Tira's guidance, had made the process much easier. Pyrrha was capable enough at fighting and killing, but there was always one thing that greatly annoyed the ring blade wielder. After every slaughter, the girl would either cry, start apologizing profusely for what she'd done, or both. While she found this greatly irritating, Tira had decided to cope with it in order to make her blind servant into the perfect wielder for her master. _It won't be long now, there's just a few more things to do…_ she thought as she stooped in front of Pyrrha.

"It…it wasn't my fault…I didn't mean to…" the girl continued.

"Of course its not your fault. The humans just don't understand malfested like you and me, so it's only natural for them to attack you. You were just protecting yourself." Tira said in a caring tone. "Don't worry Pyrrha, I forgive you."

The girl seemed to calm down a bit at this, prompting the ring blade wielder to use her next tool of manipulation.

"Pyrrha, I have some interesting news for you. As it turns out, you still have some family left, and they're looking for you."

"I have…a family?"

"Yes, a brother. He carries a shield with the same symbol as yours, and he desperately wishes to find you."

Tira smirked internally at seeing the hope rise in the girl's eyes. It was working perfectly. Before their conversation could continue, however, a small group of remaining soldiers rounded the corner and came across them.

"There she is!" said one.

"Be careful, she's a monster!" said another.

Tira glanced at the soldiers, then back at Pyrrha.

"Look! More humans who misunderstand you."

The ring blade wielder picked up the girl's short sword from where it lay and held it out to her.

"Better kill them first before they kill you."

Pyrrha reluctantly accepted the weapon, and trembled as she rose to her feet.

"I don't want to die. I don't want to get hurt." she looked over at the approaching soldiers. "Please, go away!"

Tira backed away into the shadows as the girl began to fight, smiling deviously to herself.

* * *

Thalias stared in surprise at the sight before him. Following up a tip from one of the towns they passed through, he and his allies had traveled to the city hoping to find the alleged "bringer of woe" and the malfested woman who travelled with her. What they found instead was a gargantuan number of dead soldiers and civilians. Somehow, he had a feeling they were in the right place. Signaling to the others to follow him, he began to make his way through the dead and burning city. As they walked over corpse after corpse, the young warrior glanced back at his comrades. He noticed that Varryn was only searching mildly, same as himself. However, Myles' gaze seemed to linger here and there as though he were searching for someone specific. The wolfman looked as though he paid especial attention to the younger members of the slaughtered, taking longer observations of children rather than adults. Thalias was about to ask him about it, when suddenly the clashing of steel reached his ears. It sounded like someone was engaged in a fierce battle, and judging by the volume of the clashing, it was nearby. His allies seemed to have heard the sound as well, as they now had their weapons drawn. Removing Dusk's Talon from its sheath, the young warrior led his allies in a charge toward the source of the sounds. Soon enough they found themselves watching a battle between three soldiers and someone else armed with a short sword and a shield. They were just about to attack the group, when all of a sudden blood spurted from all three soldiers, and they collapsed lifelessly at the feet of the fourth fighter. Time seemed to slow down for Thalias as a young girl clad in brown and white stood shaking fearfully entered his sight. Her hair was of the brightest gold he had ever seen, and her sky blue eyes seemed to perfectly frame her young and fair face with a beauty unlike any other he had known. For reasons he could not fathom, the young warrior found himself feeling…warm…inside, as well as a sudden desire to hold the girl tightly in his arms. Before he realized it, his face had become a noticeable shade of red. He was just about to ask the girl about her safety, when the sound of more approaching soldiers brought his attention to the alley he and the others had entered from. The young warrior quickly shot the girl a comforting grin.

"Don't worry miss, you can sit this one out. We'll take care of them." he said in a surprisingly calm voice.

As Thalias and his allies fought with the soldiers, Tira watched with anger and confusion. _Who the hell are they?! How dare they steal those souls, they were supposed to be Pyrrha's! And…that boy…somehow, he feels very familiar…_ At the exact moment he cut apart a pair of soldiers with a single powerful swing of his sword, Tira gained a pretty good idea who the mysterious boy with hair like midnight was. The ring blade wielder felt her lips forming something between a grin and a scowl as a mixture of emotions struck her at once. _Could it be…? Has he really returned after all this time? Well, only one way to be sure…_Tira stepped out of her hiding place and stalked her way to just behind Pyrrha.

"Why don't you go on ahead? I'd like to have a little chat with these people." she said.

The girl turned to face her.

"But, shouldn't I thank them first? They decided to help me, and that one person was being nice too…"

"No!" Tira snapped. Quickly calming herself, she added,

"I mean, they could just be tricking you so that they can kill you later. I'll go make sure they're trustworthy, so you just get out of here and start heading to the woods."

Reluctantly, Pyrrha nodded in understanding and left. With her puppet out of the way, Tira then turned towards Thalias, who was currently prying his blade from the chest of a dead enemy. Keeping a firm grip on her weapon, she approached the young warrior.

"Not bad, boy. You fight like an experienced warrior." she began.

Thalias seemed to tense at hearing her voice, but made no move to turn around. He did however, greatly tighten his grip on Dusk's Talon.

"I should hope so, seeing as how I was sworn to become the strongest warrior that ever lived."

He turned around to face Tira, glaring at her with beastly yellow eyes shining with anger.

"Isn't that right, _mother_?"

Both his allies and the malfested woman stiffened in shock at this. While Varryn and Myles glanced at the young warrior in surprise, Tira remained stunned. After a moment, she renewed her insane smile.

"It really is you. So, after all these years you've finally come back to me. Assuming you kept that promise, your death should be even more thrilling after we've fought. However, this doesn't quite feel like a dramatic enough place for our battle, so…"

The ring blade wielder did a huge backflip onto the roof of a nearby building, smirking down at her son.

"If you really want me, then come and get me!"

Without waiting for a reply, Tira disappeared into the shadows.

"I'll be waiting…heheheheheeheheheheehehehe!" her insane voice echoed.

Growling inhumanly, Thalias started after her without another word. Sometime later, when he and his allies had followed Tira into a dense forest, Varryn pulled him aside.

"What the hell was that?!" the tan fighter demanded, glaring furiously.

Thalias gave no reply, unfazed by the deadly glare.

"Is what you said true? Is that bitch really your mother? Well?"

This time, the young warrior shoved his ally off of him and resumed walking.

"She was Nightmare's most loyal servant. Are you really that surprised?"

"Well, I guess not, but-"

"Then shut up and let's go. The sooner we find her, the sooner we can deal with her. And…"

Thalias' anger seemed to subside by a fraction as he continued.

"I also want to rescue that girl from her. Who knows what kinds of things that bitch might have done to her?"

"Yeah, I'd hate for something bad to happen to a pretty girl like her. She seemed so sweet, with those bright blue eyes…"

"And that beautiful golden hair…its as if she's an angel sent from heaven…"

"Yeah…"

It took the sound of Myles clearing his throat for both Thalias and Varryn to realize that they were staring dreamily off into open space, with a tint of red in their cheeks. Almost immediately after, they realized they both were starting to feel the same thing toward a certain young girl. Just as they were about to begin a heated argument over who saw the girl first, a sudden rustling followed by the sound of multiple voices reached them. The tan fighter and the young warrior shot each other a glance as a sign that they'd settle this later just before the three of them went to investigate. After pushing their way through a few bushes, they caught sight of a fairly short white haired woman dressed in a red hood and violet dress who held a crystal ball, and a tall black haired man with a tattoo of a half moon on his chest who wore a thuggish vest and pants and held a cross shaped sword. But it was not these two who caught the attention of Thalias. No, it was the all too familiar blonde young man carrying an ornate short sword that appeared to be made of blue crystal. Acting solely on his anger, the young warrior stormed out from the bush with his sword drawn.

"What the hell are you doing here?!" he demanded.

Patroklos, Zwei, and Viola turned toward him. Upon catching sight of his rival, the blonde scowled furiously.

"Thalias! I don't know why you're here, but now that we've met once again its time to-"

"**Silence!"**

The sudden change in the young warrior's tone was enough to surprise Patroklos long enough for him to receive the full force of a sudden fist to the face, knocking him to the ground instantly. Without giving him time to recover, Thalias immediately picked up the blonde by his collar, and pinned him against a nearby tree. Patroklos' allies were about to intervene, when Varryn and Myles placed themselves between them and the two rivals. The young warrior glared into the blonde's eyes with angry ethereal red eyes.

"**You're tracking her, right? The malfested with the ring blade who has your sister? Did you see her pass through here?"**

"Why should I-"

"**DO NOT TEST MY PATIENCE! Now answer me, did she come this way or not?"**

Glaring angrily, Patroklos tried his hardest not to show the fear he was feeling under Thalias' inhuman gaze.

"We just ran into her. She fought with me, then ran off into the barren fields on the other side of the woods."

As thanks, the young warrior slammed the blonde's head against the tree, rendering him unconscious. The young warrior then turned to his allies.

"**Keep those two busy! I'll be back soon once she's beaten!"**

Without waiting for their response, he bolted toward the nearby field. When he got there, Tira was waiting for him, silhouetted as a menacing shadow under the bright full moon that illuminated the fields. Pyrrha lay unconscious beneath her foot, oblivious to everything that transpired around her. The ring blade wielder shot her son a sinister smile as she gazed down at the girl.

"Poor little Pyrrha, all that bloodshed must have been too much for her. If she wasn't so good at doing what I tell her, I would have ditched this brat a long time ago." she said.

"**So, instead of trying to raise me, you decided to put you faith in a girl who never should have been involved? Or did you just prefer having a fake daughter in place of your real son?"**

Tira paused for a moment at hearing the malfestation in her son's voice, but quickly recovered to speak again, this time in a much darker tone of voice.

"_At least this girl is smart enough to listen to me! You should have just stayed quiet and died, so I wouldn't have had to come and save your worthless life! Pyrrha may be a crying little brat, but she's slaughtered a hundred times more fools than you ever could! By the time I'm done with her, she'll be the perfect vessel for my master!"_

_**No…the girl will no longer suffice…she lacks the strength and the conviction to wield my power…**_

Thalias looked around in confusion at the sudden sound. It was the same inhumanly distorted voice that had spoken to him when he acquired the shard of Soul Edge. Quickly turning back to his mother, he saw that she was now looking around in surprise as well.

"M-master?"

_**Son of the azure knight…you and you alone are worthy to wield my power…surrender yourself to me…and become the warrior you always dreamed of becoming…**_

Then as suddenly as it appeared, the voice vanished. Both Thalias and Tira waited a few moments for it to speak again, then glanced back at each other when it did not. Growling insanely, the ring blade wielder kicked Pyrrha's unconscious body aside and glared at her son with dark and mischievous eyes.

"I don't know what the fuck that was all about, but it doesn't matter right now! I've been waiting a long time for this, 'sweetums'. Finally, I get to take you out of the picture for good!"

Thalias grinned maliciously as he readied his cutlass.

"**Not if I make you beg for mercy first! You'll regret abandoning me once you see how strong I've become!"**

Tira swiveled Eisern Drossel so that she was now holding it with both hands. A smile of wicked joy that rivaled her son's spread across her face.

"It's gonna be fun to watch you grovel!"

(Boss theme: Mischievous Whispers (Tira's theme))

Eager to inflict pain on the insane woman, Thalias attacked first with dual upward slash. Tira deflected one blow, then stepped out of the path of the second. Before her son could try to strike again, she planted her weapon on the ground and flung her feet through it, effectively knocking him off balance. Tira then ran towards him and did a pair of broad horizontal sweeps that cut gashes into the young warrior's side. Gritting his teeth in anger, Thalias countered by sending a lightning fast strike that knocked his mother to the ground, then followed it up by sending another strike that cut across her back and sent her rolling some feet away. Tira quickly rose to her feet, then waited for the young warrior to come charging toward her so that he'd be too occupied with his attack to stop her from sending a wide upward slash that launched him into the air. As he descended, she swung her blade in a quick triple spin that shredded his cloak and cut small fragments of his armor off. Thalias was not so quick in recovering this time, as his earlier injuries began to take their toll. Managing to shrug it off for a moment, he quickly stepped out of the path of a deadly swipe, then stepped back forward to deliver a strong thrust that cut a deep gash in his mother's arm. Tira seemed to ignore the pain as she leapt forward atop her ring blade and rode it into Thalias, dragging him brutally across the ground a few feet before stopping. Before her son could attempt to rise, she planted her foot on his stomach, pinning him to the ground.

"Hehehe! This is fun!" she cackled in insane glee.

Tira then began to spin her blade around in a deadly arc, gradually building up speed as she slowly lowered it to her son's exposed throat. Moments before the blade could decapitate him, Thalias managed to send enough strength to his legs to kick the woman in her exposed midriff, knocking her back.

"Owie!"

Ignoring the comical cry of pain from his mother, the young warrior did a lightning fast horizontal sweep that cut across her chest and placed him behind her. As she fell to her knees in shock of the sudden blow, he ran his blade through the back of her shoulder, then used her back as a springboard to kick himself off her and remove the blade. The attack left Tira dazed for a moment as she came to terms with the blood that was now streaming down her shoulder, but instead of attacking Thalias planted his sword in the ground and used it to prop himself up. The savagery with which his mother fought was proving to be too great a toll on his body, and he had already pushed it way past its limits during that previous attack. _Just a little more…_ he thought desperately. _Just try and hold out a little longer. She's faster than me, but I'm still stronger! I can beat her!_ His determination renewed, the young warrior charged toward Tira with his sword ready. The ring blade wielder attempted to stop him by slashing down in a deadly arc, but Thalias just stepped to the side and did the same in the opposite direction, cutting across his mother's uninjured arm. Before she could recover, he grabbed her and tossed her up in the air.

"**On your knees!"**

Just as she was descending, the young warrior dashed forward and slashed at her once more. Tira fell to the ground with a bloody slash across her midriff. As soon as she got up, she shifted her weapon so that it was now resting on her shoulder, and her stance became more slouched over. Thalias felt a sudden sense of unease as she glared at him with hateful eyes that shone with madness.

"_Playtime's over."_ she said in her darker voice.

Almost immediately after speaking, Tira glided across the ground, spinning her blade in rapid and deadly arcs as she went. Thalias stepped out of her path and attempted to swing down at her, but was forced to stagger back when she suddenly shifted her weapon and deflected his strike. Taking advantage of his loss of balance, Tira then did a swift quick that launched him into the air, causing him to grunt loudly in pain.

"_Just shut up…"_

As he descended, she swung her ring blade in a broad sweep that tore much of the armor on his arms to shreds, revealing the malfested arms that lay beneath.

"…_and die!"_

Tira quickly spun her blade about her body, using her momentum to deliver a quick series of slashes that struck the young warrior's chest armor and partially destroyed it before he finally collided with the ground. Weakly, Thalias got to his feet and tried to raise his sword, but fell down on one knee when he failed. His injuries were too great now, anymore stress on his body would break him. Baring his teeth in angry realization, he quickly reached for the bundle of cloth that Sanguine had given him. But while he was doing that, his mother had decided it was time to finish him off.

"_Sorry, time's up!"_ she growled while running her thumb across her throat.

Just before Thalias could reach the bundle, he was set upon by a savage barrage of powerful slashes that ripped his remaining armor apart and cut deeply into his chest.

"_Just die already!"_ his mother yelled just before delivering a final downward slash.

The young warrior lay there, broken and bleeding all over his body. Despite his efforts to will his body to rise, Thalias could no longer force himself to fight on. He managed to glance over to his side, where the bundle of cloth lay just out of reach. A dark cackle brought his attention back to Tira, who stood looming over him, smiling wickedly down at his broken form.

"_Look at you, all bloody and dying. Was that really the best you could do? I'm disappointed. But I guess that's just how it is. Once a weakling, always a weakling."_

The ring blade wielder walked over to the bundle of cloth and unwrapped it, revealing a glowing metal shard. Picking up the fragment of Soul Edge, she knelt down beside her son.

"_You thought you could use this to save yourself? How foolish. Soul Edge is not meant for a weakling like you."_

Tira peeled away the last remnant of protection over Thalias' scar, and ran an armored finger along its length, eliciting a pained growl from the young warrior. The ring blade wielder laughed insanely at his pain.

"_It's only fitting that the weapon you desire should be your undoing. Now, at long last, I will be free of you! Ta ta, sweetums!"_

With a cry of hatred, Tira plunged the fragment into her son's chest. The young warrior's vision began to darken, until finally all turned black. His final thought was of his failure to defeat his mother.

* * *

_**Is that it, son of Nightmare?**_

Thalias opened his eyes in shock, believing that he had passed on into oblivion. He found himself standing in what appeared to be an endless black void, completely alone.

_**Are you going to let that servant be the end of you? Have you really come this far, only to be destroyed before you even had a chance to face your father?**_

"Who's there? Who are you? Show yourself!" demanded the young warrior.

As if in response, a monstrous flame erupted a few feet in front of him. From within its raging fires, an abomination of scorched flesh, hellfire, and human bones stepped forth. The demonic being seemed to stare at him through eyes of flame.

_**I am the power you seek, Thalias. I am that which gives you strength. Only you are worthy to wield me, only you posses the power and the will to destroy the azure knight. Embrace me, surrender your soul to me, and I will give you the strength that you desire!**_

The flaming beast extended its skeletal hand.

_**You can accept my gifts, or you can die. Will you let your mother be the death of you? Will you let poor Pyrrha suffer her wrath?**_

The young warrior hesitated for a moment, pondering over the offer. It was true that he wanted power, it was also true that he wished to defeat his mother. This was not new information. However, how the demon had come to the conclusion that he wanted to protect Pyrrha, and the fact that he found such an unusual desire to be true, was beyond him. Still, he did indeed feel compelled to help the girl who had been a puppet for Tira, almost as strongly as his desire to become the strongest warrior who ever lived. He still did not fully understand his sudden infatuation with the girl, but that would be for another time. Right now, all that mattered was staying alive, and becoming powerful enough to win this fight. Having made his resolution, Thalias nodded.

"Very well, monster. I will accept your offer."

He reached out and put his hand in that of the beast's.

"But I want to make something perfectly clear. You can have my soul, but you will never own me. I will become the master of Soul Edge, and of you. You can count on that."

The flaming monster seemed to smile at him as it shook his hand.

_**We shall see, son of Nightmare. Now, rise!**_

* * *

"W-what the?!" Tira exclaimed as a surge of dark power blasted her away from her son's limp form.

"**Foolish servant…you forget your place…"**

The ring blade wielder looked in shock at Thalias, who was now standing straight up, completely unharmed. The young warrior had spoken in a tone that sounded at least ten years older than he actually was. Dark violet energy swirled around Thalias as he held out his arm. Dusk's Talon began to radiate the same light as its master, and instantly flew to his hand. As the young warrior took hold of the tainted blade, nightmarish armor the color of midnight began to form over every part of his body from the neck down, with the exception of his arms. His sword also underwent a change, as it was now at least a foot and a half longer, and now that its dark violet blade had straightened out had become more of a bastard sword than a cutlass. His transformation completed, Thalias glared with now violet ethereal eyes at his mother.

"**Now, I will show you…"**

The young warrior pulled back his sword.

"**The greatest nightmare!"**

Thalias swung his sword, unleashing a torrent of shadow like waves of dark power that tore apart everything they touched. The waves that struck Tira knocked her to the ground and disarmed her. Trying to maintain an aura of ferocity instead of the fear she was now feeling, the ring blade wielder retrieved her weapon and began to relentlessly attack Thalias. The young warrior stared at her with indifference as he deflected and dodged all of her blows. Catching her off guard, he thrust his unoccupied left hand forward in a quick and powerful punch that resulted in the sound of breaking bones. Tira staggered back in shock, leaving her wide open for the swift downward strike that followed. The ring blade wielder felt her chest tear as a large amount of blood spewed forth from the wound. Howling in rage, she tried to counter by sending a lightning fast slash, only to have her blade bounce harmlessly off his armor, just before a surge of dark power blew her back. Seizing opportunity of her loss of balance, Thalias charged forward and sent a quick blow with his knee that lifted his mother off the ground, just before catching her in midair and tossing her back. The ring blade wielder weakly rose to her feet, on the verge of collapsing. Because of this, she was unable to prevent Thalias from doing a forward flip that struck her with both his armored boots and his large sword. Her armor and part of her clothing shredded and her weapon thrown from her grasp, Tira fell limply to the ground. Thalias rested the tip of his blade just above her heart.

"**Now, submit."** he commanded.

The ring blade wielder could no longer fight back. Her son had done just as he had promised. He had won. Her injuries were not fatal, but she would definitely be unable to fight for some time. Tira weakly looked up at her son, who loomed over her in his suit of vile armor, wielding a blade that looked like a fusion of flesh and steel.

"You truly are…your father's son…" she said hoarsely. "What now?…will you punish me…just as he did?…Are you gonna…give me another… bastard?"

"…**.No. You have committed many grievous sins against me, but even so…"**

The young warrior closed his eyes and concentrated. Within moments, the dark armor that covered his body returned to its original state, as did the malfestation on his arms and the glow of his eyes. Now back to normal, Thalias reopened his eyes and looked at the broken woman in pity.

"You are still my mother."

Where she not seconds from collapsing in exhaustion, Tira would have laughed at the cruelty such kind words held toward her. _Even after all this time, you still call me your mother. Heh, stupid brat…_ with that last thought, the ring blade wielder slipped into unconsciousness. At long last, the fateful battle between mother and son had ended with Thalias' victory. Now there was only one other enemy for the young warrior to hunt down.

Or so he thought…

* * *

**A/N: **Whew! Finally done! Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and don't forget to submit OC's and review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Shadow Unveiled**

* * *

The moon shone brightly in the night sky, silhouetting a dark figure that strode silently across the paved street of a village in southern Germany. Sanguine continued to walk until they reached the local home for lost children, then circled around the back. The hooded figure made their way to a window of one of the rooms, and peered inside. Within the room lay a young girl, barely more than twelve years old, with ghostly pale skin and long waist length hair the color of snow. Sanguine smiled with unusual fondness at the child, just before tapping lightly against her window. It took a few more taps, but soon enough the girl awoke with a petite yawn. Rubbing the drowsiness out of her eyes, the girl then looked with orbs that were a blend of red and amber at the shadow observing on the other side of her window. Upon catching sight of Sanguine, the girl's mouth opened wide in a joyful smile. Without a second thought, she walked over to her window and opened it to allow the hooded figure entry. Sanguine quietly climbed inside the small room, careful so as not to alert the night watch to their presence. As soon as she had closed the window, the little girl ran over and tightly hugged the hooded figure.

"I missed you." she said in her child's voice.

The child had spoken in a language not native to the region, but the hooded figure had understood her perfectly. Sanguine stared warmly down at her and returned the embrace.

"I missed you too, my dearest." they replied in the same tongue.

The hooded figure then reached inside their cloak, and produced a recently blossomed rose.

"A present for you. I know how much you like them."

The girl smiled brightly again as she took the rose. After placing it in a vase on her bedside table, she went over and waited for Sanguine to sit in the larger of two rocking chairs before sitting on their lap. The girl closed her eyes and reclined against the hooded figure, smiling contently. The hooded figure returned the smile as they slowly rocked the chair, gently intertwining their claws with the girl's small hand. After a few minutes of rocking, the girl suddenly let out a violent cough. Sanguine looked down at the child in worry as she released another cough, just before falling to her knees.

"I-I can't breathe!" she said hoarsely.

Without a moment's hesitation, the hooded figure reached into the confines of their cloak and produced a vial of crimson liquid. The girl tried her hardest to hold back her coughing as Sanguine emptied the vial down her throat. The girl gagged a few times, coughed once, then was calm. The hooded figure breathed a sigh of relief, then scooped the girl up in their arms and carried her over to her bed. Once the girl was laid down, they then pulled down a portion of her nightgown, where a series of lightly glowing claw marks resided. Within moments, the injuries lost their glow, and the hooded figure shot a worried glance at the girl.

"Why didn't you tell me it was acting up again?" they reprimanded.

The girl looked up at them apologetically.

"I didn't want you to worry. I just wanted to spend more time with you before you had to leave again."

Sanguine failed to retain their anger toward the child, and responded with only a sigh as they covered her back up.

"I suppose you're right. Honestly, I wish I didn't have to leave. I'd rather spend the rest of my life with you…"

Sensing the sorrow in the hooded figure's expression, the child hugged them tightly.

"I know. I want you to stay too, but if you don't go I won't be able to see her again…"

Sanguine knew the child spoke the truth, and gratefully returned the embrace. Moments later, the hooded figure was halfway out the window, looking back at the sleeping child. In her sleep, the girl turned toward them and smiled.

"I love you, tou-san." she said softly.

Sanguine felt a sharp pang of regret, but smiled nonetheless before turning around.

"I love you too, Ryu-chan."

With that, the hooded figure closed the window and disappeared back into the night.

* * *

A few nights later, Sanguine stood looking up at the massive fortress that was Wolfkrone Castle. The German kingdom was renowned for being a symbol of hope in the dark days when the azure knight had unleashed Soul Edge upon the world. It was also the home of Hildegard von Krone, the princess and current ruler of the kingdom after the king had been stricken with madness, an ailment that was caused by none other than the cursed sword's power. Because of this, the young sword and spear wielder harbored a deep hatred for the malfested, and any other who would serve Soul Edge. To the people, princess Hilde was a hero. To Sanguine, she was nothing more than a puppet waiting for someone to pick up the strings, and the hooded figure was more than happy to fill that role. Silently, they moved with the shadows through the large gate, and made their way about the town lying within. At this hour, the castle's occupants were either in bed or on watch, the latter duty being performed mostly by the resident knights. Chuckling bemusedly to themselves, Sanguine began to ascend the walls, quietly dispatching any unfortunate guard who happened across their path. Within minutes, the hooded figure had infiltrated to within the inner areas of the castle, and was currently stalking through the halls that lead to the royal family's bed chambers. According to information they had gleaned from the locals, Sanguine was looking for a room that had a tall green haired woman named Gerhilde, the princess' royal bodyguard keeping watch. Sure enough, a few minutes of searching later and the hooded figure saw the bodyguard. As if sensing the hooded figure's presence, Gerhilde turned her head towards them, only to find empty space. The bodyguard kept her gaze for a few moments longer, still cautious of an intruder. It was all the time Sanguine needed to get behind the tall woman and strike the back of her head. Gerhilde immediately slipped into unconsciousness, and the hooded figure was forced to catch her as she fell, lest the sound of her collapse alert the princess. Carefully resting the bodyguard on a bench on the far end of the hallway, Sanguine then made their way into Hilde's chambers. The princess was still asleep, still oblivious to the fact that a powerful malfested had caught her completely unprotected. The hooded figure smiled sinisterly as they reached into their cloak and quietly approached the sleeping monarch.

"Mmm…Siegfried…" Hilde mumbled in her sleep, a tint of red appearing in her cheeks.

Sanguine rolled their eyes at Hilde's fantasy, then carefully sat down on the edge of the bed beside her, on hand on the princess' arm in a slow caress, while the other was kept behind their back. Slowly, the hooded figure leaned close to the sleeping princess.

"You make it too easy, your highness." they said.

Hilde's eyes shot open in alarm, and gazed on the intruder. Just as she was about to cry out in alarm, Sanguine silenced her with the last thing the monarch would have expected: a full on kiss on her lips. The sudden action was enough to send Hilde into a state of shock long enough for the hooded figure to bring their other arm forward, and pierce the glowing red shard in they held into the princess' unprotected shoulder. Sanguine pressed their lips together again to keep Hilde's cry of pain from escaping. After a few moments, the fragment of Soul Edge did its work, and a faint glint of red light shone in Hilde's eyes. The hooded figure then retracted themselves, and loomed over the confused monarch.

"Listen well, my servant. You are to gather up as many forces as you can, so that when I need you again I will have an army that can challenge the azure knight. Do you understand?"

Hilde lazily nodded her head in acceptance.

"Good. Now, return to your sleep."

The monarch did as asked, and Sanguine couldn't help but smile at their handiwork. Sometimes it was just too easy. Knowing that their wishes would be granted in due time, the hooded figure then silently departed from Wolfkrone, for there was still more work to be done before they returned to Thalias.

* * *

Having decided to check in on their allies who had left to recruit new soldiers for the Midnight Raiders, Sanguine headed for the border between the East and West of Eurasia. While walking through the dense and dark forest that bordered the town they were heading to, they suddenly sensed the presence of something, or someone following them. The hooded figure slowed down until they heard a soft thud land behind them. They knew who it was without even turning around, and merely sighed.

"So, your organization has set its sights on me now, has it? The Templars weren't enough for them?" they said.

"The Templars can wait for the moment. You however, cannot." said an Italian male's voice.

"You will perish, lest more blood be shed by your misdeeds. I know not what you intend to do…"

A pair of hidden blades sprouted from within Ezio's sleeves.

"But it ends here!"

Sanguine smiled sinisterly as the assassin lashed at them with both blades, stepping out of their path with ease. Before Ezio could retract, the hooded figure drew weapons of their own and sent a pair of lightning fast cuts across the assassin's side. Ezio recoiled in mild surprise and looked at his opponent's weapon. Sanguine held a pair of silver bladed estocs with rose shaped decorations on the handguards and vine like black steel hilts. Ignoring the throbbing from the wounds on his side, Ezio waited for the hooded figure to charge at him before he took a quick step back, drew the sword on his belt, and thrust forward. Sanguine twisted their body out of the path of the blade at the last possible instant, and cut a deep gash across the assassin's chest for good measure. Gritting his teeth at the injury, Ezio quickly spun around and drew his crossbow, hoping to put a bolt through the back of the hooded figure's head and end the now hopeless battle. No sooner had he loosed a bolt, than his opponent had vanished from view. The assassin looked in every direction, but could find no sign of Sanguine.

"Please, did you really think you could beat me with a cheap trick like that?"

Ezio turned and drew his knife in an attempt to stab the hooded figure where they stood, only to suddenly lose all feeling in his arms. The assassin looked in confusion to where his limbs should be, and found them lying in slowly forming bloody piles on the ground. However, he did not cry out in pain until he felt Sanguine's dual blades pierce through his knees and sink into the ground behind him, keeping him standing up straight. As the assassin struggled to free himself, the hooded figure casually walked behind him and plucked the crossbow from his back, along with a bolt. Chuckling darkly, Sanguine loaded the weapon and positioned it at Ezio's forehead.

"As you like to say, "requiescat in pace"."

Seconds later, the hooded figure was back on their way to the town, leaving an armless assassin with a bolt between his eyes behind. Soon enough, Sanguine arrived at the local tavern where Achreion and the devil brothers where staying at. They found the three malfested attempting to hire an Asian woman with jet black hair tied in a ponytail who wore a deep blue kimono with only the left sleeve that was cut off at the knees, a bow the color of seafoam on her back, blue samurai geta over her legs, and white bandages over her arms. Judging by the look on the woman's face and the half empty glass in her hand, she was not only bored of the conversation, but also probably quite drunk. Both Azrios and Diablos were sitting at a table not far away, most likely as bored of the conversation as the woman. Deciding it was necessary to interject, the hooded figure approached the talking pair.

"Good evening, everyone. How goes the recruiting?" they began.

Achreion started in surprise before recollecting himself.

"**Good heavens, sir! Please stop surprising me so!"**

"Only if I feel like it. So, who is this?"

"My name is Suki Izawawa, travelling ninja and mercenary." the woman answered before downing the rest of her drink.

"I see…"

"**I've been trying to ask Ms. Izawawa to join our side, but she doesn't seem to be listening to me. I tried paying her off, but her demands are too high for my tastes. I would've asked one of the other sellswords here, but they don't seem to be as daring as Ms. Izawawa."**

Sanguine went into thought for a moment, then turned back to the Asian woman.

"Nihongo o hanashimasuka?" they said.

Suki rose an eyebrow in interest and nodded her head.

"Hai, dozo."

For the next few minutes, Sanguine and Suki proceeded to hold a conversation in a language that Achreion had never heard before, and thus left the nobleman hopelessly confused as to what they were saying. More than once in the conversation, the pair of foreign speakers would turn their attention to him and the brothers behind him, and would utter something that sounded like "baka" before chuckling. Even if he didn't understand what they were saying, the nobleman was pretty sure this was some form of insult. Finally, after a few more minutes Suki nodded her head in agreement with whatever Sanguine and her had talked about.

"Congratulations gentleman, we've gained ourselves a new ally."

Achreion looked at the hooded figure in surprise.

"**Wait…just like that? Just one conversation, and you've convinced her to join us?"**

"Yes, just like that. It honestly wasn't that hard, I don't see why you had so much trouble."

Despite the obvious insult to his intelligence, the nobleman decided to just accept the new addition to their party.

"**Regardless, I think it's about time we started heading back home. I'm sure Thalias is back from his urgent quest. Hopefully he's in a better mood than when we last saw him."**

"Hmm, good point. The four of you may return to House Sorel, I will seek out Thalias and meet with you later."

"**Very well. Best of luck, good sir. Until we meet again."**

With that, the hooded figure parted ways with their allies and disappeared back into the darkness.

* * *

"You're sure your boss will be alright with this?" Thalias asked the odd pair in front of him.

Zwei and Viola stood some distance away from him and his allies, with Patroklos slung over the former's shoulder. While the young warrior had gone to face his mother, Varryn and Myles had been left to deal with the werewolf and the seer. Surprisingly, when Thalias returned with an unconscious Pyrrha in his arms and a badly injured Tira limping behind him, neither pair of fighters was wounded. In fact, their appeared to be no signs of struggle whatsoever. When he asked about this, Viola answered that since she and Zwei weren't exactly fond of their arrogant companion to begin with, they saw no reason to raise arms.

"Nah, don't worry about it. As long as you guys don't turn out to be a pain in the ass, we probably won't have to bother you." answered the thuggish werewolf.

"Fate may intend to see us do battle, but not now." Viola said cryptically.

The young warrior shot her a questioning look, but shrugged his shoulders and discarded the thought soon after. With nothing more being necessary to say, the two groups parted ways. Some time later, after Pyrrha had woken up, the Midnight Raiders paused to rest. At this time, Thalias allowed Varryn to exact his vengeance on Tira, on the condition that he neither violate nor kill her. Surprisingly enough, the tan fighter's revenge wasn't as violent as he had expected it to be. Varryn hit his mother a few times, but then stopped after that. Perhaps the fact that she was already in a poor state made it difficult for him to carry out his anger to the fullest, or maybe he had lost some of it over time. Either way, Thalias was glad that his ally had let his anger out, so at least now he could feel some form of satisfaction. While he was engaged in a conversation with Pyrrha, a sudden rustling drew the young warrior's attention to the nearby brush. Instantly, everyone readied their weapons in preparation for a duel. However, upon seeing the source of the noise, they lowered them and breathed sighs of relief.

"Okay, you seriously need to stop sneaking up on us like that." he groaned as he put away Dusk's Talon.

"Nice to see you too, son of Nightmare." the hooded figure replied, stepping out of the brush.

Sanguine scanned the group, eventually settling their eyes on Tira. The ring blade wielder was the only one who kept a tight grip on their weapon, well aware of what the hooded figure was capable of. Smiling sinisterly, they made their way over to Tira.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't my dear old friend Tira. It seems I was right to trust Thalias with facing you after all, considering how dreadful you look right now."

"Says the bitch hiding under a rag! What's the matter, afraid you'll turn to dust if you show your ugly mug?" the ring blade wielder countered.

"As sharp tongued as ever, I see."

The rest of the group looked back and forth between the two bickering figures in confusion.

"Sanguine, you were friends with Tira?" Thalias said, dumbfounded.

The ring blade wielder shot her son an annoyed look, then directed it back at the hooded figure.

"Sanguine? Is that what call yourself now? Since when did you use an alias besides the 'Crimson Queen'?"

"Wait, 'Queen'?" noted Varryn.

Thalias growled in frustration.

"Enough of this! Just who the hell are you, Sanguine?"

The hooded figure paused for a few moments, then sighed in defeat.

"Very well, it seems I must reveal myself earlier than planned."

Slowly, they drew back the hood that obscured their features. As soon as the concealment was removed, long hair the color of snow cascaded down the figure's back, stopping just past their shoulders. The face of a pale skinned woman with blood red eyes, four black horns that resembled a small crown atop her head, and semi-long pointed ears rose to meet the group's eyes. The unmasked woman couldn't help but smile at the shocked looks on her allies faces. Tira remained unfazed, and decided to introduce the woman herself.

"Ladies and gentleman, I present Shinzo Koutari, the other deadliest assassin the Birds of Passage has ever produced."

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, unless you've read my previous works, or you're Lonewolf or Holy Writer, you're probably not gonna recognize this character. Shinzo is an older OC of mine, and I hope you all come to like her as much as I do. Suki Izawawa was created by Whitewolf7o6, thanks again for the OC! (and yes, she and Shinzo were speaking Japanese) As always, don't forget to submit a character and leave a review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.

Ps: Before anyone complains about me killing off Ezio, please know that I have never played Assassins Creed andhhave next to zero knowledge about the series. I still think Ezio is a cool character, but I don't know him well enough to keep him in.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: Wings of Sorrow**

* * *

All eyes but Tira's gazed at Shinzo in surprise and curiosity. Those who had caught glimpses of the cloaked malfested's body had expected a sight far more sinister than that of the pale woman who watched their reactions with amusement. Not only that, but they had also perceived her to be a male, given her behavior and tremendous strength. After about five minutes of most of the party gawking in awe, Shinzo's amused expression turned to annoyance. The cloaked malfested gave a huff of irritation as her blood red eyes bore into those of the others.

"Have you finished staring? If I recall, we have a quest to uphold. Now are we going to move along, or am I going to have to mutilate one of you wenches?" she said in a fairly low, but definitely female voice.

Upon hearing the threat, all but Tira nodded in understanding and dropped their dumbfounded expressions.

"Sorry, it's just that none of us thought you'd look so…well, human." Varryn said.

"Human? Please! The Crimson Queen is anything but human!" Tira chided.

"What makes you say that? Surely she was a human at some point?" Myles inquired.

"Hardly. With a body like hers, she's been a freak since the day she was born."

The ring blade wielder shuddered.

"I can't believe you tried to use that thing on me."

Shinzo shot her a sinister grin that could frighten demons.

"What can I say? You were just too cute to ignore back in the day. It's no wonder the mistress took a liking to you."

"Well at least she wasn't a weirdo like you! She never tried to touch me the way you tried to!"

"A girl like me has many curiosities. What's wrong with investigating a few of them?"

"Everything is wrong when you're trying to get into my-"

"ENOUGH ALREADY!" Thalias roared.

Both assassins turned toward him in surprise. The young warrior was currently glaring at them in extreme annoyance, as well as grabbing frantically at his ears.

"Your conversations are getting way too weird for us to follow, and on top of that you can't seem to stop talking for two freaking seconds! If you want us to move on, then just shut up and start walking!"

Tira and Shinzo paused for a moment, then shot Thalias a deadly glare. The next thing the young warrior knew, he was on his back, with a ring blade at his throat and an estoc against his forehead. Both assassins glared down at him with killing intent.

"Watch your tongue, boy/sweetums." they said in unison.

Unfazed by the deathly glares, Thalias merely sighed before muttering an apology and pushing the weapons of off him. Rising back to his feet, he then turned to Pyrrha, who was glancing at the three of them in hopeless confusion.

"I don't understand…Tira, what's going on? And who are all of you?" she said in a quiet and angelic voice.

The young warrior silently chastised himself. In all the commotion with his duel with Tira and Shinzo's revelation, he had forgotten to identify himself and his allies. Quickly calming himself and putting on a more relaxed and welcoming expression, he stepped closer to her.

"Forgive me, I haven't properly introduced myself yet. I am Thalias, Tira's son. These are my comrades, Varryn, Myles Cross, and as we have just discovered, Shinzo Koutari."

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance, my lady." Varryn said gentlemanly, bowing for emphasis.

"Don't mind him, he's just a poor beggar we brought along for the ride."

"Wha-?! I am not!"

While the tan fighter glared daggers at a smug looking Thalias, Pyrrha glanced back and forth among the people gathered before her. Her gaze lingered a little longer on the young warrior who had claimed that Tira was his mother. The older woman had never mentioned having a family of her own before, and the blonde couldn't help but wonder why that was. While dwelling on this, she traced over Thalias, memorizing his form. Now that she thought about it, the young warrior did seem to resemble Tira. Both of them had that small twinkle in their eyes that made her feel like they were slightly off, both of them were only a little taller than she was, and since Tira mentioned once that her hair had been blue when she was younger, had nearly the same hair color. What was more, both of them were being kind to her, though Thalias lacked the hint of mischief in his tone that Tira usually spoke with. Instead, there was something...warmer, about the way he spoke to her. All this aside, there was one thing she was still uncertain of.

"Tira?" she said quietly.

The ring blade wielder shot her an irritated frown.

"What is it?"

"Can I...can I trust these people? Are they, well, are they like us?"

"What do you mean, 'like us'?" Myles inquired.

Pyrrha gulped nervously, hand reflexively inching toward her shortsword.

"Are you...malfested?"

The others looked at her in mild surprise. Tira glanced over at Thalias, curious to see how her puppet would react when her son revealed himself as the monster she knew him to be. The young warrior took a moment to regain his composure, then after considering the impact his next action would have on the young girl, reached toward his glove. Realizing what his ally was doing, Myles proceeded to follow his example and pulled down his hood. Shinzo merely crossed her arms in front of her, feeling she was revealing enough without having to show the rest of her form. Slowly, Thalias removed his glove, and held up the malfested limb that lay beneath, eyes turning an ethereal violet at the same time.

**"Yes. Just about every one of us here is a malfested. The only exception is Varryn."**

Pyrrha stared at everyone for a moment, observing their various forms of malfestation. Soon enough, a light smile spread on her lips, and she sighed in relief as she pulled her hand away from her weapon.

"Thank goodness...so you really are like Tira and me."

"Wait, are you saying you're malfested as well?" Varryn asked.

Pyrrha nodded shyly, still unsure whether or not to trust the human.

"But you look like a normal person!" the tan fighter continued.

Tira scoffed at this.

"So do I, idiot. It doesn't matter how we look on the outside, the fact alone that our souls have been touched by Soul Edge makes us malfested. Whether you choose to believe it or not, she's as much of a killer as I am."

Pyrrha backed away fearfully, lightly grasping at the sides of her head.

"No...no I didn't mean to! I was just protecting myself from them!"

While others looked at her in confusion, Thalias glared at his mother. Somehow, he knew that she was responsible for the clearly fragile state of the young girl's mind, and more likely than not the reason she had become a malfested as well. Slowly, he walked over to Pyrrha and wrapped his arms around her. The girl stopped shaking at the sudden contact, and looked up at him. The young warrior smiled down at her with his glowing eyes.

**"It's okay, Pyrrha. I believe you."**

"You...you do?"

**"Of course I do. Humans don't understand us, so the only thing they can do is try to get rid of us. We have to fight them, otherwise we'll die."**

Pyrrha glanced back down at her feet in uncertainty.

"But, I don't want to kill anymore..."

**"Then you won't have to. If anyone tries to harm you, then I'll deal with them. So long as you are with us, you will never be forced to raise your sword again. That, I promise."**

Despite the malfestation and darkness emanating from his being, the young girl could see the honesty in Thalias' eyes. Smiling as light tears of joy formed in her eyes, Pyrrha nodded and relaxed herself against the young warrior. Varryn observed the scene with mixed envy and confusion, while Myles gave an all knowing smirk. Tira just rolled her eyes and groaned in annoyance. Sighing as the peaceful moment carried on a bit too long for her liking, Shinzo approached the others.

"Alright, I think that's enough drama for now. We'd best be heading back to House Sorel, it won't be long before the others arrive there."

Thalias turned toward her and nodded in agreement.

**"Yes, we've been gone long enough. Speaking of which, how did the recruiting go?"**

Shinzo smirked as she turned and started walking.

"I'd say I've made some...significant progress. As for the others, I'm sure they're doing just fine."

* * *

"Aahahahahahaha! Squirm, you maggots!" a deep and powerful voice boomed.

Achreion grit his teeth in frustration as he ducked under the swing of a gargantuan axe. The nobleman shot a quick glance behind him where Diablos lay in an crumpled heap on the other side of a recently felled tree, having been tossed aside as though he were nothing more than a fly by the massive enemy standing before him. The thing resembled a huge, green skinned man, who stood at least 8ft high and carried an axe as big as his body. He had set upon the unsuspecting Midnight Raiders in the middle of a thick forest The golem had four metallic spikes crackling with energy protruding from his back, which served as the source of the vein like glowing streams of green energy that flowed into the center of his large chest. Azrios charged toward the golem from behind, greatsword pointed forward. The golem saw him out of the corner of his eyes, and shot his foot out just before the strike could connect. The blue devil was sent reeling back from the sheer force of the blow, leaving him wide open for the golem to grab him by the collar of his chest plate. The massive man first slammed Azrios' side against his armored knee, then spun around and hurled him to the ground. The blue devil groaned weakly as he tried to rise, only to collapse in pain and exhaustion.

**"Dammit!"** Achreion growled as he strode toward the golem.

Like with Azrios, the massive man attempted to stun the nobleman first so that he'd helplessly fall into his iron grip, and swung with the flat of his axe. Achreion managed to crouch under the attack and deliver a quick slash across the golem's shin. It seemed to have no effect, as his massive opponent took another broad swipe with his axe. The nobleman barely managed to sidestep the attack, and desperately thrust first his scabbard, then his actual blade into the golem's side. Again, there was no effect, and the golem wheeled around to face him. Before the nobleman could try to escape, he placed the back side of his axe against the ground, and charged forward. Achreion was unable to prevent the large blade from cutting across his legs. The golem strode past the nobleman, but let his axe drag to under the smaller fighter. Before Achreion could make sense of the seemingly reckless attack, the golem then pressed down against the end of the axe in his hand, causing the other end to arc upward and launch the nobleman into the air. Just before Achreion hit the ground, the golem caught him by his foot, just before ramming the top of his axe into the nobleman's chest twice, sending him skidding across the ground. Achreion struggled to rise to his knees, the pain of several broken bones and powerful impacts taking their toll. He looked up to see the golem stomping towards him, cackling insanely as it went. Slowly, it heaved its gargantuan axe above its head to deliver a killing blow.

"Now, die!"

Knowing there was no way to avoid the incoming attack, the nobleman closed his eyes and waited for the end. He heard the axe begin its descent toward him, but felt no injury land. Instead, he heard a fairly large grunt of pain come from the golem as it was struck by something. Curious, Achreion opened his eyes to find Suki standing in front of him, fists poised for battle as the golem staggered back, clutching at its face. Despite his thankfulness for the Asian woman coming to his aid, the nobleman couldn't help but think about one small detail.

**"Where the devil were you when he showed up?! We've barely managed to scratch that monstrous brute!"**

"I _was_ enjoying a sip of vodka, but something made the ground shake and I spilled it all! Do you have any idea how much you westerners charge for a glass of such a fine drink?" she growled back, dodging a swing from the golem's axe at the same time.

**"I'll buy you a whole pack later, just give us a hand here!"**

Suki grit her teeth and crossed her arms in front of her as the golem attempted to strike with a powerful kick. Shrugging off the pain she felt the impact, the Asian woman then grabbed hold of the large limb and pulled, throwing her massive opponent off balance. While the golem struggled to regain his footing, Suki springboarded off his knee and into the air above his head, holding out her sleeved arm as she did so. Suddenly, a very long and thin red wire extended from within the sleeve toward the golem's head, wrapping around his large neck. Suki yanked on the wire just as she passed over his head, pulling her onto the massive man's back. As he tried to shake her off, the Asian woman proceeded to rain a lightning fast flurry of blows on his face. However, this did little to actually injure the golem, and only served to further enrage him. The massive man managed to grab hold of one of Suki's legs, and flung her from his back. Realizing the wire was still attached to her wrist, the Asian woman pulled again, using both her strength and her momentum from the throw to pull the golem towards her. The golem fought against the force pulling on his throat, and pulled back in retaliation, sending his smaller opponent soaring through the air back towards him. Suki was undeterred by the change in direction, and instead used it to propel herself toward the center of the golem's chest, extending her foot as she went. The blow struck home, making the golem roar in pain as he stumbled backward toward the ground. Knowing it wouldn't be long before the massive man rose again, the Asian woman retrieved the wire from around his neck and wrapped it around his axe instead. Gritting her teeth as she pulled against the weight of the massive weapon, Suki finally managed to raise it skyward so that it fell down towards her. The Asian woman leapt off of the massive man just as the back of the axe came down on his head. The golem groaned once, then fell silent as he slipped into unconsciousness. Finally recovered enough to stand, Achreion walked over to Suki, who stood staring down at the fallen giant in deep thought.

**"Splendid work, Ms. Izawawa. You have my thanks, and I'm sure my companions would say the same if they weren't unconscious."**

The Asian woman gave a 'hmm' of recognition, narrowing her eyes at the golem. Suddenly, the massive man groaned again, and began to stir. Achreion backed away in shock, quickly taking hold of his sword.

**"How can than this be?! Surely you must have smashed his brains to bits with that blow?"**

The golem slowly sat upright, rubbing his injured cranium.

"Ugh...my head..." he groaned. "What happened? Where am I?"

The golem looked over at the pair standing to his side.

"Who are you?"

Achreion hesitated, unsure what to say to the obviously unstable monster. Before he could form a response, Suki stepped forward.

"Don't you remember? You're my servant, and I'm your master."

"You...master..."

The nobleman nervously glanced at the Asian woman.

**"Ms. Izawawa, what are you doing?"** he whispered.

"What does it look like? I'm taking this thing with us."

**"Are you insane? You saw what he's capable of!"**

"I know, he's stupendously strong. Doesn't your boss want people like him, though? You know, big strong and stupid?"

**"Not all of us are stupid..."**

"Then shut up and let me do my thing." she then turned to the golem. "Oi! Servant! Remind me what I named you."

"I...am...Astaroth..."

Achreion sighed as the Asian woman continued talking to the massive man. _This is a terrible idea, I can already tell. Hopefully Thalias is going through something equally frustrating._

* * *

Thalias walked steadily through the dark forest, with Pyrrha at his side and Tira close behind them. The three of them had chosen to travel separately from the others so as not to draw attention to themselves on the way back to France. Even after learning she was malfested, Varryn had wished Pyrrha a safe journey, and told Thalias to take good care of her on the way back. While the young warrior had initially wished for his mother to travel with Shinzo, as he felt the assassin would have an easier time keeping her under control than himself, Pyrrha's attachment to the ring blade wielder had ended up dragging her along with them. Though confident that he could overpower Tira again should the need arise, Thalias kept a close eye on her while they walked. So far his mother had yet to try anything shifty, but that only put him more on edge about her. Fortunately, the fact alone that he had Pyrrha walking alongside him with a rare joyful smile on her face put him at ease. Eventually the setting sun caused them to seek the shelter of a small clearing with a nearby river to stay the night. A little while later after building a fire, Tira lay sleeping on her side while the two younger malfested sat next to teach other, still somewhat awake and gazing into the slowly burning flame. Feeling uncomfortable by the awkward silence between him and the young girl, Thalias decided to strike up a conversation. Pyrrha seemed a little reluctant to talk at first, but eventually opened up to him to the point that they spent several minutes chatting idly away. After hearing of the young warrior's escapades up until the point he met her, Pyrrha gazed over at the ring blade wielder snoring lightly on the other side of the flame.

"Still, I can't believe Tira never told me she had a son. I don't know why anyone would ever want to be apart from their family..."

The young girl's gaze became downcast, and her lips formed a small frown.

"She told me that I have a brother, someone named Patroklos who carries a shield like mine. If that's true, then I wish I could meet him. He's the only family I have left now, if he's even still alive..."

Trying to comfort her, Thalias put his arm around her shoulder, bringing the girl closer to him and resting her head against his chest.

"Do not worry, Pyrrha. Your brother lives, and he is searching day and night for you. I know this because I have met him."

Pyrrha looked up at him in hopeful surprise.

"Really? What's he like?"

The young warrior hesitated at this, silently cursing himself for bringing up his rival. As much as he wanted to badmouth the arrogant blonde and shed light on his murderous ways, not to mention his bitter resentment for the malfested, he knew that if he wanted Pyrrha to keep trusting him that he would have to choose his next words carefully. Contemplating, he tried his best to come up with anything positive he could say about the arrogant blonde.

"Well, he's strong, and very brave. I've never seen anyone as determined as he is, that's for certain. I'm sure he cares for you more than anything in the world."

While the young warrior tried not to vomit at how kind he had been towards his rival, Pyrrha looked down in thought and smiled.

"I see...he sounds like a great person."

Despite the cruelty in his heart, Thalias could not bring himself to tell the girl the truth, that her human brother despised all malfested, and would most likely raise his sword against her as he did to any other of the cursed sword's victims. She was the only one who's cries of sorrow he never wished to hear. He was broken out of his thoughts as the girl leaned further into his chest, curling up beside him as her eyes closed and she began to drift into sleep.

"I'm glad that you're so kind to me. Thank you, Thalias."

Though her kind words warmed his heart, he still felt the guilt of withholding the truth burning into him. As Pyrrha slept, he pulled her into a welcoming embrace.

"No matter what happens, I will never abandon you. I promise." he whispered.

Soon enough, sleep overtook him as well, and he drifted into slumber, resting his chin atop the golden haired maiden in his arms. What neither of them knew was that Tira had overheard the entire exchange, and could only frown in annoyance. _Idiot...feelings like those are what makes you weak. They'll only hurt you in the end..._

The next day, the trio continued their journey back to House Sorel. Once again, Pyrrha walked side by side with Thalias, smiling happily. The young warrior was glad to see such an expression on her face. From what he had gathered during their exchange the night before, such joyous emotions had become increasingly rare for the young girl whose life had been connected by one terrible tragedy to the next. About halfway through the day, they stopped to rest at another clearing following the same river as the one before. Suddenly, an inhuman hiss rang out through the clearing, causing all of them to look around in confusion. Finding nothing, Thalias grit his teeth and drew his bastard sword.

"Who's there? Show yourself!"

The next thing he knew, a twin set of razor sharp claws glided painfully across his back, followed by the loud thud of something man sized landing on the ground behind him. Growling in anger, Thalias turned around to see a fairly tall man with pale grey skin wearing some bizarre outfit comprised of purple and gold furry pants and red bandages over most of his body, covering both his mouth and eyes. In his hands the freakish man held a pair of katars, each possessing a trio of deadly blades. After laying eyes on the mysterious attacker, Thalias felt less angry and more disturbed. Especially by the manner in which the man stood, constantly moving his entire body and yet gaining no distance, as though he were a flowing body of water that could tear one to shreds with its claws. Just as he was about to attack the freakish man, Pyrrha darted in front of him, sword and shield drawn.

"Pyrrha, what are you doing?"

"I...I'll do it! I'll fight him!"

"But-"

"I want to repay you for making me feel happiness again. Please, I can do this!"

Thalias was about to say more, when suddenly he felt a hand upon his shoulder. He turned to see Tira staring sternly at him.

"Let her do it. She can take on this creep."

The young warrior stared at his mother in confusion. For a second, he could have sworn he saw...compassion...in her otherwise mad eyes. Still surprised by her actions, he turned to Pyrrha and nodded. The young girl nodded back, then turned back towards her opponent. As the two of them began to clash steel, he turned back to his mother.

"Can she really beat him?"

Tira shot him an annoyed look.

"Of course! She has years more experience than you do, so she'll be fine."

Still unsure, the young warrior turned back to the battle. The freakish man's movements were snakelike and extremely fluid, making him a slippery and unpredictable opponent. He also seemed to possess amazing agility, as he would sometimes bend backwards and walk on all fours, and was fully capable of fighting with his back facing his opponent. Pyrrha struggled under the freakish man's quick and savage assault, but persisted to continue. Eventually she found an opening, and sent the freakish man skyward with a powerful bash of her shield. As the man neared the ground, she struck him again in a way that Thalias would never have expected: by swaying her hips and smacking him with her backside. Oddly enough, the unusual attack seemed to do quite a bit of damage, as the freakish man was sent flying into a nearby tree. He rose to the ground again shortly after, but his stance was noticeably more sloppy, a clear sign that his injuries were starting to take their toll on him. Determined to finish the battle with the next exchange, Pyrrha charged toward her opponent. Before the freakish man could anticipate her move, she spun around and struck his chest with a backhanded slash of her sword, which she then followed up with a low strike that took him off his feet and left him exposed for the subsequent upward spiral slash. Then just as he was about to touch the ground, Pyrrha struck one final time with a downward swipe that cut across the back of the freakish man's neck. Her opponent fell to the ground with a thud, and became still. The young girl stood over the fallen fighter for a moment, panting in mild exhaustion until Thalias took hold of her arm and turned her toward him.

"Are you alright? Did he hurt you?"

She slowly nodded her head.

"Yes, I'm fine."

The young warrior breathed a sigh of relief and loosened his grip.

"Thank goodness. Nicely done, by the way."

"T-thank you."

"Come, we'd best be on our way before something even uglier shows up."

The young girl nodded, and the two of them began to walk away. Tira lingered behind, smirking darkly down at the freakish man.

"Well well, Voldo, isn't this embarrassing? Done in by a frightened little girl. Oh well, I suppose that's what you get for being such a creep." she mocked. "_He_ must be getting desperate to send you all the way out here."

Upon registering her own words, the ring blade wielder's smirk vanished.

"Wait...if you're here, then that means-"

Tira slowly backed away from Voldo's corpse, just before breaking into a sprint as she chased after her son and Pyrrha. Even if she yearned for her bastard child's demise, she wanted it to be by her hands. But if Voldo was here, then there was a good chance that Thalias may soon meet his end. However, it would be by the hands of his much stronger, much darker, and much more vile parent...

* * *

"Well, isn't this just perfect?" the young warrior growled.

Not long after exiting the forest, he and Pyrrha had found themselves wandering through a fairly large town. However, there was an unexpected impediment in their path when they arrived. Upon entering the town square, they were greeted with the sight of a tremendous inferno that had spread to several buildings, barring their path. Thalias frowned in irritation as he looked around the burning town for any signs of a safe route.

"Damn, everything's burning on this side! We'll have to find some other way around. And where the hell is Tira?"

"Who could have done this?" Pyrrha thought out loud.

"Pyrrha!"

Both the young girl and the young warrior turned in surprise at the new voice. While Pyrrha stared at the newcomer in confusion and hopeful wonder, Thalias felt a fierce scowl beginning to form on his face. For running towards the two of them with a crystal like short sword and a crimson shield in hand, was none other than Patroklos. The blonde man's eyes lit up with joy upon catching sight of his sister, immediately recognizing her by her shield and golden hair.

"I finally found you..." he said.

Pyrrha stared at the man in slight confusion, until she noticed the familiar symbol emblazoned upon his shield.

"You're...Patroklos?"

"Yes, yes it's me! I'm your brother!"

Tears of joy began to form in the young girl's eyes.

"It's true...I really do have a family..."

Patroklos was about to reply, when he took notice of the familiar figure standing behind his sister. His joy was immediately replaced by hatred and anger as he pointed his sword at Thalias.

"What the hell are _you_ doing here?!"

The young warrior deepened his glare as he stepped closer to Pyrrha.

"I am protecting her." he said simply.

"Liar! Monsters like you would never show such kindness!"

Pyrrha glanced at Thalias in confusion, then turned back to her brother.

"Patroklos, what-"

"Get away from him, Pyrrha! He's a malfested vermin!"

The young girl was taken aback at this, unsure how to respond. _Vermin?_ While she was trying to formulate words, Thalias stepped forward.

"So what if I am malfested? As far as I can tell, I've been doing a better job of taking care of your sister than you have!"

"Shut up! I won't tolerate the filth of your kind contaminating Pyrrha! Now back off, or I'll kill you where you stand!"

"Stop it!" Pyrrha shouted, stepping between her brother and her friend. "He's just trying to help me, why are you threatening him?"

"Because he's a malfested! I swore that as a holy warrior, I would kill every last malfested on the earth! Vile scum such as them don't deserve to live!"

At this, the young girl's eyes began to fill with doubt and rejection.

"But-"

In the middle of her sentence, she took notice of something behind her brother.

"Who is that?"

Confused by her words, Thalias and Patroklos followed her gaze to a silhouette slowly approaching them from out of the flames. The young warrior suddenly felt his arm and sword began to vibrate wildly in his hand, an ethereal violet glow slowly forming around it. The voice of the demon within his mind reached out to him.

_**It is him...I can feel his darkness...**_

_Who? Wait...can it be-_

**_Yes...there is no mistaking it...he has__ come..._**

The figure entered their field of vision, and all of them saw the shining azure armor it wore. The man was tall, had wavy blonde hair, a face hidden behind a mask, glowing red eyes, and in his hand he held an enormous sword made of flesh and steel, with a single mad yellow eye that glared at all it observed.

_**...the Azure Knight.**_

Thalias went motionless at this. Anger, rage, and confusion flowed wildly through him, so much that his body could not decide which emotion to act upon. While he was in shock, Patroklos glared at the man in azure armor.

"Dumas? Why are you here? What do you want?"

"I am not here for you. I am here for that sword." the man growled back.

"What?!"

The short exchange had been enough to bring Thalias back to reality. He had completely forgotten that his rival was carrying the spirit sword, Soul Calibur, the one thing that could pose a threat to his plans to take Soul Edge for himself. The azure knight grit his teeth in fury before continuing.

"Hateful sword... I shall destroy it here once and for all!"

With that, he plunged his sword into the ground, causing a rush of crimson energy to erupt around him. When it faded, there stood Nightmare in all of his vile glory. His malfested right arm pulsing with dark energy that flowed from his spiked shoulder to his three massive talons, and his eyes and horn glowing an ethereal red. Long red hair flowed from the back of his helmet, swaying as he slowly approached the trio. Still blinded by anger, Patroklos rose his weapons in preparation.

"You think you're Nightmare? Take off that silly armor, he doesn't exist!"

In response, the azure knight rose Soul Edge high above him.

"Watch out!" Pyrrha yelled.

The young girl pushed her brother aside just as Nightmare swung, her shield taking the full force of his superhuman strength and causing her to be flung back a good 20ft.

"Pyrrha!" cried Thalias.

The young warrior knelt beside her as she lay dazed. Hearing a clash of steel, he turned his attention back to where the azure knight and Patroklos stood dueling. The blonde man's resolve seemed to be weakening by the second as he came to terms with the reality of what was happening. In the midst of this, Nightmare drew his sword back in preparation for another blow.

**"The azure nightmare stands before you now!"** he bellowed.

The pair clashed again, and Patroklos staggered back. His eyes slowly widening in terror, the blonde man glared as best he could at his opponent.

"Dumas, you were Nightmare all along? I don't understand, why did you have me kill the malfested?"

**"You haven't realized it yet? Those I ordered you to kill were nothing but weak and foolish humans like you!"**

At this, Patroklos' eyes widened to the brim in utter horror. Trying to keep his sword pointed at the azure knight, his shield hand slowly came up over his face.

"No...I never killed any humans!"

As the reality of his deeds came crashing down on him, he fell to his knees.

"They were monsters...they were all monsters!"

Panicking, the blonde man charged recklessly toward Nightmare. The azure knight swatted him aside with ease, sending Patroklos crashing against a pile of rubble. Now sure that Pyrrha wasn't mortally injured, and since his rival was no longer in the way, Thalias drew Dusk's Talon and rose to his feet. Wearing a grin of dark excitement and anger, he strode toward Nightmare.

"So...at last we meet..." he growled.

**"Who are you, insolent fool?"**

"I am no fool. My name is Thalias. I've been waiting a long time to meet you face to face...**f****ather."**

The young warrior thought he saw the azure knight's ethereal eyes widen in surprise as he activated the cursed sword's power within him. Now two dark knights stood before one another, one clad in azure, the other in midnight. The violet energy that radiated from Thalias and Dusk's Talon resonated with the crimson energy that surrounded Nightmare and Soul Edge. The azure knight stood staring down at his son for a time, as if coming to terms with what he had just heard.

**"So...you still live. I would have thought Tira had killed you years ago."**

**"She tried to, but as you can see her efforts had a more...empowering, effect."**

**"Indeed. I can feel Soul Edge's power burning within you, granting you the strength that lies in its darkness."** Nightmare paused for a moment, then continued.

**"Why have you sought me out? Do you expect me to shower you with love and affection, to apologize for not being a better father? Because if you do, then you are pathetic. I made you for one reason and one reason alone, to teach your mother what happens to those who fail me. You are a mistake, and that is all you will ever be!"**

Despite the immense cruelty behind the words, Thalias was not harmed by them in the slightest. He had already expected such an answer from the bastard who fathered him. Instead of crying out in anger and protest, he barred his teeth in a wicked grin.

**"You're right, I am a mistake. Because you gave me life, I have been given the pleasure of destroying you! Your time as Soul Edge's master has ended, azure knight! I will slay you, and then I will take that sword as my own! You are no longer worthy of its power!"**

Something along the lines of great hatred flickered through Nightmare's eyes. The azure knight tightened his grip on the cursed sword as he readied it for battle.

**"How dare you! Insolent child, I will erase you from this world!"**

Both Thalias and Nightmare roared with fury as they swung at each other. Sparks of dark power burst off their weapons as they exchanged blows, each trying to overpower the other with their demonic strength. The young warrior found himself wavering slightly under the power of Soul Edge, who's strength almost felt three times his own, but he persisted nonetheless. Nightmare growled as a slash cut across his malfested arm, severing spike from his shoulder. In retaliation, the azure knight roared furiously right before unleashing a savage barrage of tremendous blows upon his son. Thalias was now forced to retreat under the sheer power of his father. With nearly every strike he landed on the azure knight, Nightmare landed at least four more. The young warrior felt his power begin to wane as chunks of his armor started coming off when struck, and cracks appeared along the length of Dusk's Talon with each blow it blocked. Finally, with one final powerful strike, the azure knight shattered the upper half of his son's blade. Thalias watched in awestruck horror as Dusk's Talon flew from his grasp, leaving him defenseless against the downward slash that followed after. Blood splattered across the pavement as the young warrior was flung back, landing beside Patroklos in a crumpled heap. A deep gash had been cut from his left shoulder to his lower right side, not enough to be fatal, but enough to keep him from fighting any longer. _My sword...he broke it...he beat me..._ he thought as he struggled to rise. The azure knight's footsteps sounded like thunder as he walked toward the two fallen warriors, glaring at them in hatred and disgust. Upon reaching them, he rose Soul Edge once more.

**"Soul Calibur, and my greatest mistake, ends here and now!"** he declared.

"NO!"

By this time, Pyrrha had recovered from her earlier injury, and placed herself between the azure knight and her loved ones just in time to block his strike. The young girl grunted in frustration as she struggled to hold back the large blade.

"You'll have to get through me first!" she stated.

"Pyrrha..." Patroklos whimpered.

**"So a puppet controlled by a fool intends to stop me?"** Nightmare growled.

Pyrrha closed her eyes as she lowered her head.

"Stop hurting me...stop rejecting me...stop killing me!"

Her eyes suddenly sprang open, glowing an ethereal violet.

"ST**OP!"**

As she screamed, a surge of crimson and black energy swarmed around her, turning her clothing black and red and changing her arm into a malfested one like Thalias' and Nightmare's. The azure knight reeled back in surprise, just before roaring in anger and attacking the young girl. Pyrrha stepped out of the path of the blade and sent a savage thrust into his side, just before smacking him with the butt of her shield and slicing at his throat. Nightmare countered this by sending a lightning fast punch that threw her away from him. The young girl was undeterred, and quickly rose to attack again with renewed savagery. Soon enough, the azure knight began to feel the combined strain of his earlier injuries merging with that of the recent ones. Knowing that his victory was no longer guaranteed, he sent a quick blow that made Pyrrha stagger back so that he had the necessary space.

**"Is that all?"** he taunted just before vanishing in a burst of flame.

Pyrrha remained staring at where the azure knight had been standing for a few moments before dropping her sword and slumping over in exhaustion. Quickly recovering once she realized she was not alone, she turned back to her brother and friend. Thalias had managed to prop himself up on one knee, and was currently making a makeshift bandage for his wound out of the remnants of his chest armor. Patroklos, on the other hand, was laying on his back, staring fearfully up at his sister. Slowly, Pyrrha walked toward him.

_"Are you...alright?" _she said in her now distorted voice.

Thalias watched as Patroklos shook with fear while shakily pointing his sword at the young girl. Pyrrha's eyes drooped over slightly in sorrow at this.

_"You can't accept me...if I'm malfested?"_

"Just...give me a moment..." he whimpered, backing away from her.

The young girl continued to advance toward him.

"Please, just let me think!"

Sighing regretfully to himself, Thalias rose to his feet and walked up alongside Pyrrha.

**"This is the true face of your sister. She, like myself, is a malfested. Knowing this, do you still wish to be with her?"**

Patroklos glanced frantically between his rival and his sister. Wanting his response, Pyrrha approached her brother again. The blonde man instantly thrust his sword at her face, stopping mere inches from it and making her back away in surprise. The young girl's sad eyes bore down at him again.

_"We're a family...Right, Patroklos?"_

Still hesitating, the blonde man lowered his sword and stared down at his feet.

"We are a family...but why is this happening to our family?!"

With that, he rose to his feet and ran as fast as he could, not once looking back to see the tears now falling down his sister's face. As Pyrrha began to cry softly, Thalias put his injured arm around her to comfort her.

**"It's not your fault. He just doesn't understand. To him, he sees nothing more than a monster forged by evil. But to me..."**

The young warrior lifted the young girl's face up toward his by her chin, and smiled honestly down at her.

**"I see beauty. I see perfection. There is nothing about you that frightens me. Rather, I feel closer to you now than before. Malfested, human, whichever. So long as you are yourself, then that is all that matters."**

By now, Tira had caught up to the others, and had watched as Patroklos fled from her son and Pyrrha. Noticing how the two looked at the moment, she decided she could let one moment of peace befall them, just this once. The young girl smiled hopefully up at Thalias before capturing him in a strong hug.

_"You and Tira are the only one's I can ever trust! Please, don't leave me!"_ she said into his chest.

Thalias smiled warmly and returned the embrace.

**"I'm not going anywhere, Pyrrha."**

* * *

**A/N:** Whew! Finally done! I apologize for the unexpectedly long delay, but I am now working on two stories at once. Every week I will alternate between working on a chapter for this story, and one for the other story. (titled "Love, Eternal" if you're interested) I hope this extra long chapter makes up for the wait. As always, feel free to submit OC's, please continue reading, and don't forget to review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Fire and Shadow**

* * *

Thalias sighed as he paused to catch his breath. The young warrior and his companions had been walking for two days straight, stopping only every so often to rest and eat. What was more, the severe injury he had received during his confrontation with his father had dealt more damage than he had previously thought, and caused him pain whenever he strained himself too much. Despite that, Thalias had only become more determined than ever to defeat the azure knight. So with the hilt of his broken sword in hand, the young warrior trudged onwards. Pyrrha ran up to him and put a hand on his shoulder in concern when he slowed down again. Noticing this, Thalias smiled at her before standing up straight and putting his own arm around her. The beastly yellow of his eyes met the ethereal violet of hers, and they embraced one another. Tira watched from a small distance behind, scoffing at the small display of affection. Unlike the others, who had chosen to disguise their malfested bodies beneath cloaks, the ring blade wielder wore her usual attire, and kept a small distance between her and them. She was still uncertain as to why she had chosen to follow her son after he had defeated her instead of taking advantage of his weakened state to kill him, but for the time being the ring blade wielder was without a plan. Thalias' sudden reappearance had put a halt to her carefully woven to convert Pyrrha into the ideal vessel for her master, and she could have sworn she heard it say so itself that her son was now the only one who could take their place as its wielder. _We'll see about that. _She thought. _He's never going to get his hands on that sword as long as Nightmare can toss him around, not to mention he needs something else to fight with now that that toy he called a sword is broken. It won't be worth killing him if he can't even fight back._ Sometime later, the trio finally arrived in France.

"Thank the gods…we're almost there now." Thalias said once they had entered the residential area of France's outskirts.

Now that they were in a city with a large amount of humans about, they decided it would be better not to draw attention to themselves and stuck to taking alleyways and less used roads in order to reach House Sorel. At some point, they came across a barefoot young man dressed in badly worn clothing and bandages with unusual white hair and strange red markings along his arms and body that stuck out from beneath his clothing. The man looked to be somewhat younger than Thalias, and he gazed up at the young warrior as he approached, almost seeming to glare at him with red eyes. The young warrior was just about to pass him by, when he felt something stir in him upon standing next to the younger man. A familiar presence radiated from his body, one that he had shaped into his very being. While his companions looked on in confusion, Thalias stared down at the younger man.

"You there. Who are you?" he demanded.

The younger man looked straight into his eyes, completely unafraid.

"My name is Taru. Who the hell are you?" he answered.

"I am called Thalias. Tell me, what is a malfested like you doing alone in a place like this?"

Rage surged through the younger man's eyes at hearing the word 'malfested'. He stood up to glare into Thalias' eyes.

"I am no malfested! How dare you associate me with one of those monsters!"

"Oh? But you are malfested. I can sense the presence of Soul Edge running through you. I know because I have it as well."

The young warrior pulled back one of his sleeves to reveal his malfestation. The younger man seemed to hesitate for a moment in surprise, then renewed his glare.

"Bastard!"

Thalias merely watched as the younger man raised his fist and struck him directly in the face, making his head tilt slightly to the side. At seeing her friend hurt, Pyrrha reached for her sword. As if sensing the action, Thalias held up his hand as a sign to stop. Slowly, the young warrior turned his gaze back to Taru. There was a light bruise on his cheek where he had been punched, but Thalias didn't seem fazed by it at all. In fact, he seemed rather amused.

"Not bad, Taru. That punch was a little weak, but I can see that there is much more potential from where that came from. Still, I'm afraid I can't just let that slide…"

In the blink of an eye, the young warrior seized Taru by the collar of his torn shirt, and held him against the wall of the alleyway.

"Tell me, weakling, how much do you hate the malfested?"

"Not as much as I hate their leader! The azure knight destroyed my family, I want to see his head on a pike!"

"Heheh, well said. You know, for a weakling I can see a great strength buried deep within you. I'll bet I can find a good use for that anger of yours, so what do you say you join me and my gang, and I'll give you the chance to have a hand in Nightmare's demise? It's that or spending the rest of your life as a poor tramp wandering aimlessly."

The offer was unexpected, and left the younger man staring at his captor in confusion. Still, despite the fact that one of the malfested he so despised was pretty much forcing him to comply, Taru could see a hatred similar to his own burning within those eyes. Reluctantly, he nodded.

"Fine, but don't expect me to just be your friend. I'm only doing this because I have no other choice!"

Thalias only smirked in response and dropped him back to his feet. Tira shot her son a look of confusion.

"You're letting him join? But why? He's obviously a complete weakling!"

The young warrior glanced back at his mother.

"So was I, if you remember."

He left it at that, and the four of them walked together back to House Sorel. When they arrived, they found the rest of the Midnight Raiders waiting for them, as well as the newcomers they had brought along with them. Thalias was especially interested in how his allies had managed to win over Astaroth, who looked fully capable of crushing everyone in the room, but after receiving an exhausted look from Achreion, decided he could wait to hear the tale some other time. After that, the young warrior went over what had transpired with him and his own companions during his absence. His allies were greatly shocked to hear of his duel with the azure knight, and to see how he had failed. However, they seemed less concerned with his failure to accomplish his task and more impressed that he had done very well before his defeat. Once everyone and everything was cleared up, the Midnight Raiders decided to retire for the evening, for all of them needed a rest after the increasingly strenuous activities during the past week. However, Thalias remained awake, standing alone on a balcony as he stared up at the moonlit night sky. Many questions plagued his mind at that moment. How was he to defeat his father? What was he going to do about a new weapon? And…what about Pyrrha? From the moment he had embraced her, the unfortunate girl had seemed to constantly be on his mind. Unlike the others, whom he respected as warriors, the feelings he held toward Pyrrha were of deep compassion and concern for her safety. He was well aware that she would need someone at her side for a while now that her only family had forsaken her, and the young warrior was more than ready to fulfill that obligation.

"No one will harm her…" he said to himself.

The young warrior felt his fists clench as anger coursed through him.

"I swear, I will destroy that bastard if it's the last thing I do! I'll make him pay for what he's done to me, for what he's done to all of us!"

"Is that truly the only thing you can think about?!" an angry voice came from behind him.

Thalias turned in surprise to find Myles standing in the doorway to the balcony, glaring furiously at him through his brown eyes and his canine teeth bared in a snarl.

"Wha-"

"I had hoped that there would be more to you, Thalias, but it seems that the only thing that matters to you is revenge! You are so obsessed with carrying out your vengeance that you lose sight of what is truly important. You forget that there are two young children out there who are in dire need of your help, and the longer you spend brooding over your revenge, the more terrified they become! It's your responsibility to look after them, just as you promised so long ago!"

"Myles, I don't have any children."

The wolfman's glare vanished as he registered what he had just said, then averted his gaze in shame. Thalias wasn't entirely sure why his ally had chosen to let out such an outburst, but after thinking about it he had a pretty good idea.

"You're not here just to cause chaos, are you Myles?"

The wolfman remained silent for a moment, then sighed.

"I suppose there's no point in hiding it any longer, and I apologize for yelling. You see, a few years ago my son and daughter were stolen from me by your father, and on that same night I was turned into what I am now. I have been searching for them ever since, because even if it sounds impossible, something tells me that they are still alive. It was my wife's dying wish that I look after them, and so I have to do anything I can to find them."

Myles found the strength to look at his ally directly before continuing.

"That is why I sought out your group. I thought that if I joined you in your quest, then I could not only take revenge on the azure knight, but also reunite with my children as well."

The young warrior chuckled lightly in response.

"And here you said I had issues with revenge." then he looked the wolfman straight in the eyes. "I understand your concerns, Myles. I'll make sure I keep an eye out for them when the time comes for me to face my father once more."

"You're not…angry?"

"Well, I am a little. You should have just told me the truth from the beginning. Don't worry, I won't tell the others about this if you don't want me to."

Myles found himself at a loss for words. The sudden maturity and wisdom with which the young warrior spoke impressed him. _Perhaps there is more to this boy than absolute darkness after all._

"Unless you've got more to say, then go ahead and get some rest. The gods know we all need it." Thalias finished before turning back to the night sky.

"Very well then. Good night, Thalias. And…thank you."

The young warrior just nodded as he heard the wolfman walk away. Eventually exhaustion led him to seek out his own bed, but he was surprised to find that Pyrrha was already lying in it when he arrived, sound asleep atop the sheets. The young warrior smiled warmly at the golden haired girl, then lay gently down alongside her. As if sensing his presence, Pyrrha rolled over and pulled him close to her. Thalias paused for a moment, then smiled again as he returned the embrace and rested his forehead against hers as he drifted peacefully into sleep.

* * *

A few days past, and the Midnight Raiders had nearly finished regaining their strength. However, there had been no new orders from their leader, so they decided to go about getting to know one another instead. Shinzo was the only exception to this, having disappeared for reasons she would not disclose during the night. While they did this, Thalias continued to contemplate his next move. While he was thinking one afternoon, Shinzo returned and sought him out, saying that they needed to speak in private.

"I've made my decision." the cloaked malfested said.

"And what decision would that be?" the young warrior inquired.

"Time is beginning to run out. It will not be long now before Patroklos awakens Soul Calibur to its full potential and seeks you out, and your father is already gathering his forces to begin a new war against the world. Once again, it seems that the only way we can move closer to your goal is if I move things ahead of schedule. Although I still believe that you are not ready, I must begin your training if you are to ever have a chance at defeating the azure knight."

A smile of dark excitement spread across Thalias' lips at this.

"It's about damn time!"

"Indeed. I shall show you how to properly utilize the full extent of the cursed sword's power. But before we can do that, there are a few pressing matters that we must address."

"Again? What other trials must I endure?"

"All will be explained at the proper time. Go pack your things, we're going to have to go somewhere where I can teach you without any of them hindering your progress. If you have anyone you wish to say goodbye to before we depart, best you do it now, for there is a strong chance that you may not return from this journey."

The young warrior paused at this in concern, then after thinking it over nodded in acceptance.

"I understand."

Shinzo nodded.

"Good. Meet me at the front gates at dusk."

With that, she disappeared into the shadows. Thalias did as instructed, and readied a small bag filled with the bare essentials. Taking his broken blade in hand, he strode out of his room to say farewell to Pyrrha, for he knew that she would miss him the most out of everyone there.

"I'll be gone for a few days for some training. Until then, Achreion is in charge." he explained. Then, he sighed deeply as he stared fondly into the golden haired girl's violet eyes. "I'm going to miss you…"

Pyrrha looked to be upset at this news, but nodded in compliance all the same. Not wanting to prolong her suffering a moment longer, the young warrior turned to leave.

"_Thalias, wait!"_ she cried.

He turned around to address her, and suddenly felt her lips pressed against his. They lingered like that until Pyrrha pulled away for need of air, by which time both of them had turned a bright shade of red.

"_Please, come back safe."_ she said quietly.

Still awestruck by the golden haired girl's sudden boldness, Thalias could only nod in response. Satisfied with the answer, Pyrrha allowed him to leave. Just before the young warrior left through the front gates, he turned back and called to her.

"I will return to you, Pyrrha! I promise that I will!"

And with that, he turned and vanished into the darkness of night. A couple days of travelling later, Shinzo had led him to a massive tower that sat on the outskirts of Ohstreinsburg. The cloaked malfested had instructed him to climb all 60 of its floors until he met with them once again atop the grand structure. From where they stood looking down upon the world on a large circular platform, Shinzo's deep red eyes bore into the frustrated young warrior.

"There had better be a damned good reason for why I just climbed all of those stairs." he growled as he caught his breath.

"Patience, boy. All in good time." the cloaked malfested began. "Tell me, do you know where we are?"

"A giant freaking tower in the middle of nowhere?"

"Not just any tower. This is where the great hero king Algol, the first man to ever wield Soul Edge and resist its temptation, shattered the cursed sword for the first time, and from its remains created the spirit sword Soul Calibur. This place bears a very strong connection to the swords, and so I have brought you here in order to unlock your true potential." she said while walking around him. Shinzo then settled her crimson gaze on the young warrior.

"You have heard it, have you not? The voice of the cursed sword, the spirit that lies dormant within it. It is the force that drives you, the monster that fuels your rage and gives you strength."

Thalias widened his eyes in surprise.

"You know of the beast?"

"I do, for I have also heard its call. The monster itself has no name of its own, though there are some who have encountered it, and live to tell the tale. They call it…Inferno."

_Sounds about right for a freak like him._ the young warrior thought.

"Right now, you lack the strength necessary to win Inferno's faith in you, and you will not be able to face your father until that is remedied. Therefore, in order to restore your strength, and to solve the problem of your lack of an armament, you will face the monster. If you defeat Inferno, then your powers will be unrestricted, and you can use them to create your own weapon of choice. However, should you fail…"

The cloaked malfested glared straight into the depths of Thalias' soul.

"Then your soul will be lost forever, and you will become nothing more than nourishment for Soul Edge. Do you understand?"

The young warrior nodded, yellow eyes burning with determination.

"Whatever it takes. Anything to obtain the strength I require."

Shinzo let out an amused chuckle at this.

"Your resolve is admirable, boy. Now, put it to the test. Cleanse your mind of all but your desire for strength, and challenge Inferno. Only within the realm of Chaos can you face the monster."

Thalias nodded, then sat down and meditated. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and concentrated. Soon enough, he found himself immersed within the depths of his subconscious.

_I am here, Inferno. Come and face me, coward!_

A pillar of flame exploded violently in front of the young warrior, and from its confines stepped the spirit of Soul Edge in all his vile glory. Inferno's nightmarish body was ablaze with hellfire, and his skull shaped face seemed to glare at him in fury.

_**You would dare to challenge me, son of Nightmare? Even after you failed to prove your strength against my invincible power?**_

_If your power is so great, then why did it take my father so long to beat me? Why don't you stop running that trash can you call a mouth, and show me for yourself just how powerful you are?_

Calling upon the strength of his will, a fully repaired version of Dusk's Talon appeared in Thalias' hands.

_I'll take you down, and then your power will be mine for the taking! _

Inferno stared at him for a moment, then broke out into a ghastly noise that Thalias could only assume was some sort of laughter. The entire world around them became illuminated as molten cracks spread across the ground.

_**Foolish boy! I shall enjoy devouring your body and your soul for all of eternity!**_

(Battle theme: Hellfire (SCII, Inferno's Theme))

The spirit of Soul Edge roared as it called forth a column of flame that extended in its hands, taking on the shape of a flaming long and red staff with golden tips. Scoffing at the sight of the unusual weapon, Thalias charged toward Inferno with his bastard sword raised. The young warrior unleashed a quick flurry of slashes and cuts upon his opponent, but to his dismay every one of the blows was either deflected or dodge with ease. Inferno then sprang forward into an assault of his own, using the length of the staff to first deliver two horizontal strikes, then finishing the chain with a swift kick that struck Thalias' side. The young warrior ignored the painful strike and used his opponent's attempt to recover to bring his sword down upon their unprotected shoulder, sending some of the flames that littered its body falling to the floor as the blow landed. The monster reeled back with a growl, then countered by spinning its staff in a vertical wheel like motion to send a rapid volley of strikes against the young warrior. Thalias managed to evade the attacks, and attempted to catch his enemy off guard with a quick backhanded slash, only to have Inferno block and counter it with three quick bashes of his staff, knocking the young warrior to the ground. As Thalias rose to continue his struggle, he came to a sudden realization. All of the movements with which the monster wielded its weapon were exactly the same as Kilik's had been when using polearms. Enraged at the sudden reminder of the man who had betrayed him, the young Thalias roared with fury before unleashing a much more powerful and precise barrage of strikes on Inferno. The monster was caught by surprise, and so fell victim to the vicious attack. As Inferno staggered back, the staff in his hands transformed into a rapier with a crimson handguard. _Aw shit._ the young warrior thought as he recalled his difficulty in handling users of the fast weapon. He soon found himself in a difficult spot as his much more experienced opponent proceeded to cut, stab and kick him at nearly every opportunity, leaving very little room for error in his movements. Thalias tried his hardest to fight back against the now incredibly fast monster, but to no avail. After receiving a rapid assault of ten quick jabs at his torso, the young warrior fell to his knees. Inferno twirled the rapier in its hand around tauntingly.

_**What's the matter? Are you already finished?**_

Thalias grit his teeth in rage before rising to his feet once more.

_You wish!_

The monster was forced to quickly raise his thin blade in defense as a powerful blow directed at his head nearly decapitated him. Of course, the fragile frame of a rapier could not withstand the intense pressure of a bastard sword for long, and so Inferno growled in pain when his blade split in half and Dusk's Talon tasted his rotten flesh once more. Noticing that nearly all of the fire had been hewn from his body, the monster roared in anger. As if in response, all of the fire surrounding the fighters returned to Inferno. The monster then called upon a pair of ornate tonfas, a type of weapon Thalias had yet to face. Once again, the young warrior found himself struggling against the lightning fast flurry of blows his opponent flung his way with the lightweight weapons. However, despite their speed in attacking there was a considerable amount of time required for the monster to reset his stance. Upon realizing this, Thalias bided his time against another rapid flurry before tripping his enemy with a sudden low sweeping kick followed by a quick upward slash. Dazed at the sudden strike, Inferno could only watched as the young warrior then knocked him to the ground with a powerful strike, only to send him rolling away with another strong swipe across his back. The monster rose angrily to his feet, transforming his weapons into an all too familiar ring blade. Upon catching sight of the weapon, Thalias' eyes widened in shock.

_Wha-?! How is that possible? How do you know so many styles?_

_**I am the physical manifestation of Soul Edge. Every memory of every weapon the cursed sword has ever done battle with is engraved into my being, and so I can create an endless supply of weaponry at my leisure, with the knowledge of how to properly use each one.**_

As if to demonstrate, Inferno then sent an upward slash that stunned Thalias, just before delivering an upward spiral kick that launched him into the air and finishing with a downward slice. The young warrior collapsed to the ground in pain, and struggled to rise to his feet once more. Instead of continuing to fight with the weapon of his opponent's mother, Inferno transformed it once more. Thalias watched in awestruck horror as the monster took hold of its own copy of the same sword he held in his hands.

_**You are unworthy of this power. You do not even know how to properly use it. Perhaps if you did…**_

In practically the blink of an eye, Inferno rushed forward and delivered a tremendously powerful blow that reduced Thalias' sword to the same state it held back in reality, casting the young warrior to the ground at the same time.

_**Then you would not have been so weak. Even your own sword turns against you! Face it, son of Nightmare, you have lost! Surrender yourself to me, so that I may devour your soul and move on to the next possible vessel. Perhaps your fool of a mother was right. Maybe that sniveling puppet of a girl is my rightful wielder. Yes…I think I'll enjoy making her my slave…**_

_Never…_

Inferno glanced over at the young warrior. Thalias was propping himself up with the remains of his broken sword, and glared with ethereal violet eyes at the monster. Dark violet/black energy began to radiate from his body and weapon, seeming to give him a sudden boost in strength as he rose to his feet.

_Never…I will never let you harm Pyrrha! She belongs to me, and so do you!_

With an inhuman cry of rage, Thalias surged toward Inferno with the hilt of his broken blade held in both of his hands. The monster merely drew its arm back in preparation to deliver a final killing blow. However, when the young warrior was only a few feet away from him, something happened that the spirit of Soul Edge did not foresee. The power radiating from Thalias enveloped him, adorning all but his head in an even more sinister suit of pure midnight armor and extending his wild mane to just past his shoulders. The hilt of his shattered weapon extended, and from its guard a monstrous set of jaws grew, opening wide and retching forth an enormous and jagged blade the same color as his armor, with a red crystalline eye embedded near the base of the blade.

_**Im-Impossible!**_

Inferno desperately raised his sword in defense as Thalias brought down his newly formed greatsword, bringing with it a torrent of darkness and violet fire. The spirit of Soul Edge found himself struggling to hold back the powerful strike, and soon was forced to fall down on one knee under its overwhelming might. As his opponent struggled beneath him, Thalias roared in a monstrously distorted voice before applying even more force behind his blade. At this, Inferno's strength was overpowered by his opponent's might, and the monster cried out in rage and disbelief as his weapon blew apart and the midnight blade came crashing down on his skull, ferociously splitting it in half. Inferno fell to his hands and knees, volcanic blood pouring from the divide in his face as he seethed and panted on the before Thalias. The young warrior glared down at his enemy in loathing as they barely managed to rise to their feet.

_**This…cannot be! How…how can you be so powerful?!**_

In response, Thalias aimed the tip of his greatsword at the monster.

_Now, monster, realize your place! Kneel before your master!_

_**Insolent brat…I do not kneel for any-**_

_KNEEL!_

To his shock, Inferno found himself being forced to his knees by the sheer power emanating from his opponent.

_Your power is mine, monster. You belong to me. Never forget that!_

Despite his rage, the spirit of Soul Edge he had been beaten. Perhaps the boy truly was the one chosen to wield him after all. And such power…never before had Inferno been witness to anyone besides the azure knight who possessed such raw strength. Swallowing his pride, the monster lowered his head in respect to the young warrior.

_**Very well then. You have conquered me this time, son of Nightmare, but do not expect me to forgive you should you be bested a second time by your father. Return now to the world from whence you came. **_

Feeling himself now back in reality, Thalias opened his eyes to find himself standing before an amused looking Shinzo. The cloaked malfested was slowly clapping her hands in a congratulatory manner as she approached him.

"Well done, boy. Very well done indeed." she said, then looked at the enormous greatsword in his hand. "That's quite an impressive blade. What shall you call this one?"

The young warrior held the large sword in front of him, carefully observing its features.

"**I shall name it…Agria Mesanychta." **(Greek for "ferocious midnight")

"Hoh? A fitting name for such a weapon. I'm sure it will serve you well."

Thalias felt a wave of anxiety course through him as Shinzo's lips curled into a sinister smirk that could frighten demons.

"Now that you've acquired your powers, what do you say you put them to use? Show me what you can do, and I'll be more than glad to return the favor."

"**Wait…you wish to begin our training now?"**

"But of course. Some people prefer the slow process of carefully refining their pupil's skills through constant practice. As for me…"

In a single fluid motion, Shinzo flung off her cloak.

"I prefer teaching through hands on experience."

Thalias gasped upon laying eyes on the malfested woman's exposed form. With the exception of a crimson breastplate on her fairly small chest and a torn skirt and belt over her waist, Shinzo wore no clothing. The malfestation of her body had transformed her so greatly that most of her features were hidden beneath an almost biological suit of armor, including a long tail that swung back and forth behind her. On either side of her waist sat three silver bladed estocs with rose motifs on their handguards. As if to display her own weaponry, Shinzo drew a pair of the thin swords.

"These are my weapons, Tsumibukai Bara." (Japanese for "sinful rose")

A crimson aura the same size as Thalias' violet one began to swarm around the malfested woman, turning the silver blades of her swords a deep crimson.

"Now, son of the azure knight, show me the extent of your power!"

* * *

**A/N: **Taru was created by fellow soul calibur player Alphawolf (friend from online, doesn't write for this site) He may not seem like much now, but just you wait…Also, sorry if some of you were hoping for a mono-e-mono duel between Thalias and the Crimson Queen, but this chapter ended up being a lot longer than previously planned so it'll have to wait until next chapter. As always, hope you enjoyed and don't forget to review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Crimson Queen**

* * *

Thalias quickly rose his greatsword in preparation for what he knew would be a fierce and difficult battle. Noticing this, Shinzo smiled with vicious intent, showing off sharply curved fangs as she readied her now blood red swords.

"It's been ages since I've fought a worthy opponent. Do your best to not die right away, would you?" she cooed wickedly.

(Battle theme: Blood and Darkness (from Bayonetta, because there is no SC song I can think of that can describe Shinzo))

The malfested woman struck the first blow, bolting towards Thalias at an impossible speed. The young warrior had just enough time to maneuver his sword and stop her from taking his head off, then shoved her back before striking with his empty left hand. Shinzo nimbly ducked out of the way of the attack and back flipped onto one of the many pillars bordering the edge of the platform that served as the roof of the tower. From there, she leapt over the young warrior's head toward another pillar and spring boarded off of it, propelling herself toward him and spinning her blades in a deadly spiral. Thalias thrust his greatsword in an attempt to skewer her, but to his dismay the malfested woman only used the action to reposition herself so that she stood atop the large blade. Growling in annoyance, Thalias called forth a surge of power that ignited his sword, just before rotating it and slamming the flat of the blade into Shinzo's side. The malfested woman flew toward the edge of the platform, but used her swords to catch herself from going over. Once repositioned, she began to rapidly dart around Thalias, appearing to be standing at one spot then the next in the blink of an eye. The young warrior slashed at her when he thought he caught her off guard, only for Shinzo to deliver a pair of lightning fast slashes across his back. Thalias immediately turned around, swinging his sword at the same time. Again he cut only air, and two more blows landed on his side and shoulder.

"What's the matter boy? Too fast for you?" the malfested woman taunted.

Enraged and no longer certain of his enemy's position, the young warrior channeled the power flowing through his sword and swung it in broad 360˚ sweep, unleashing an arc of dark energy at the same time. Shinzo was forced to stop dead in her tracks in order to stop the sudden attack. It was all the time Thalias needed to close in on her and deliver a powerful swing of his greatsword. The malfested woman somehow managed to stop his sword with hers, despite them being much smaller and thinner than his own. Not only that, but Thalias suddenly found himself being pushed back by Shinzo. The malfested woman smirked wickedly as the young warrior soon became the one trying to keep their opponent's weapons from meeting their target. _What the hell is this?!_ Thalias thought. _I just gained a tremendous amount of power, so how can she be stronger than me? _Enraged at his sudden weakness, the young warrior released an inhuman roar before stepping to the side so that Shinzo's blades struck the air beside him. As he stepped, he brought his greatsword back around for a downward strike. Mildly surprised at her opponent's sudden burst of speed, Shinzo barely managed to somersault out of the way in time. Thalias' blade instead crashed down on the platform beneath their feet, causing a number of large cracks to form where it had landed. Not wasting a moment on recovering, the young warrior then proceeded to wildly swing his large weapon about, forcing the malfested woman to go on the defensive. In the midst of one attack, Thalias managed to cut across Shinzo's midsection. Dark blood sprayed across the platform as the same blow slammed into it. Before either warrior could make another move, the ground beneath them shattered, dropping them into the inner floors of the tower. As the debris from the roof broke apart the upper floors beneath him, Thalias caught his footing on a larger piece of debris and searched for his opponent.

"Over here."

The young warrior turned in time for one of Shinzo's swords to sail dangerously close to his head, scraping across his cheek as it stuck into the debris beside him. He looked over to see the malfested woman latched onto another piece of falling debris, with at least 36 swords floating in the air around her.

"**What the-?!"** he sputtered as he barely deflected another flying sword. **"Where the hell did all of those come from?"**

"Surprised? This is the kind of power I possess! Brace yourself, son of Nightmare!"

Without another word, Shinzo sprang off her piece of debris and through the air, extending her arms forward as she flew. As if in response to her actions, the swords began to fly rapidly toward the young warrior. Knowing there was no way to completely avoid the attack, Thalias gathered his strength and leapt into the air to meet his opponent, deflecting as many of the flying blades as possible. Just as the number of weapons was reduced back to six, the floating swords flew back to their master's side just in time for Shinzo to counter Thalias' attack with one of her own. The two fighters exchanged blows as they continued their descent, not stopping until they had fallen to the 46th floor of the tower. Had they been regular humans, the impact would have slain them instantaneously. However, both fighters called upon the dark powers they wielded to shield them from the crash, leaving them unharmed as they resumed their respective stances. It was then that Thalias realized that he no longer felt any of the injuries he had gained during the previous clash. In fact, there weren't even open wounds or gaps in his armor anymore. As he pondered this, he glanced back at Shinzo. The malfested woman was in a similar shape to him, looking as though she had been untouched throughout their duel so far. As if reading his thoughts, she gave him an intelligent smirk.

"I see you've noticed some of the 'gifts' Soul Edge has granted us. Our bodies heal at a much faster rate than normal humans, and we are able to channel the power within our souls through our weapons to make them more suitable for destruction. For example, my copied swords and your dark power bursts. However, your abilities are still limited, so try not to let yourself become too injured. The more serious the damage, the longer it takes to heal." she explained.

Shinzo then raised her weapons once more.

"Now, let us continue. Show me more of what you can do."

"**Believe me, I intend to!"**

With that Thalias charged toward the malfested woman, spinning his greatsword about his body as he went. Just as it was about to connect, he quickly stopped and spun his blade in the opposite direction. The young warrior thought he had fooled his opponent when he felt his blade collide with something, but when he turned to investigate the damage he found only a large pile of rubble in place of where Shinzo had previously stood. Quickly retracting his blade, the young warrior was once again forced to look around for his opponent. After turning around for what felt like the hundredth time, he found himself face to face with an upside down Shinzo. The malfested woman smirked, then in the blink of an eye cut an X across his chest. As Thalias staggered back in pain and confusion, he noticed the reason for the sudden awkward position of his opponent. Shinzo was hanging by her feet from a pair of her swords she had lodged in the remnants of the room's ceiling. The malfested woman then began to steadily approach Thalias, quickly shifting the positions of the swords held by her clawed feet. Despite being inverted, Shinzo was able to move as quickly as she had when on the ground, and proceeded to slash mercilessly at her opponent, weaving around his attempts to strike back in an almost dance like fashion as she went. Annoyed by his inability to keep up with the malfested woman's quickly changing tactics, Thalias sent an arc of dark energy at the ceiling from which she hung, forcing her to detach. The moment Shinzo touched the floor, she quickly channeled her own power through her blades before spinning around and hurling arcs of her own, one from each blade in her hands and feet. Though the arcs were only half the size of the ones Thalias could create, the fact that there were four instead of one was enough to compensate for their lower destructive power. But that didn't mean they didn't deal considerable damage to the young warrior as three of the four slammed into him, knocking him against the wall on the other side of the room. Knowing he had mere seconds before Shinzo was upon him again, Thalias quickly rose to his feet and readied his weapon. As he suspected, the malfested woman was already approaching him. However, the four swords she had wielded previously were nowhere to be found. Only the third pair on her belt remained. As he was thinking about this, the young warrior noticed that he was suddenly surrounded by a mist of what appeared to be red flower petals. Realization dawned on him seconds later, and he quickly rolled away from the mist. No sooner had he done so, than the petals had transformed into the four swords missing from Shinzo's belt, stabbing into various locations where he had previously stood. The malfested woman quirked an eyebrow in mild surprise at this, and smiled bemusedly at the young warrior as he rose to his feet.

"Impressive. Usually the mist trap is the last mistake they ever make. How did you notice?"

"**I've seen some pretty strange shit today, and after that stunt with the multiplying swords, it wouldn't surprise me if you tried something like that. You might as well give up your little tricks, because they're not going to work on me any longer!"**

Shinzo's crimson eyes shone with malicious intent at this.

"Is that so?"

The next thing Thalias knew, he was crying out in pain while falling to his knees. Before he could figure out what was happening, the pair that was still at Shinzo's side had disappeared inside the floor, only to reappear from the wall behind him and pierce through his midsection. The malfested woman chuckled darkly as she walked over to him, her swords now back where they were supposed to be.

"Perhaps I was wrong about you. Maybe Tira was right, maybe you are just a weakling after all. You will never defeat your father, you will never master this power, and…" she lowered her voice for emphasis. "…you will never see Pyrrha again."

The young warrior froze at this. Then his entire body began to shake as rage coursed through every fiber of his being. The violet aura surrounding him grew, and he glared up at Shinzo with pure hatred.

"**You bitch…GO TO HELL!"**

Time seemed to slow down as Thalais roared with fury before delivering a broad upward slash that severed the malfested woman's arms at the elbows. Before Shinzo could try to react, the young warrior thrust his greatsword through her all the way to the hilt, then tore it back out to spin around and slash her brutally across the chest. The malfested woman flew across the room, accompanied by her limbs and her now severed breastplate and spraying dark blood everywhere. She slammed into the wall, then collapsed with a thud to the floor. Panting as his rage slowly began to die down, Thalias planted his sword in the floor and leaned on it to support himself. Regardless of his newfound healing abilities, he had overexerted himself with that sudden outburst. _At least I took that freak out of commission. Rotten bitch…_ he thought. _I suppose I'll have to find myself a new informant now._ No sooner had he thought this, when the sound of quiet laughter reached his ears. Confused, the young warrior turned his attention back to Shinzo's body. The malfested woman lay on her side with her back facing him, cackling insanely as blood pooled around her. Her head tilted to the side so she could look at Thalias, and she couldn't help but smile sinisterly as his eyes widened in shock.

"Excellent! What a brilliant display of power! Well done, Thalias!"

The young warrior just continued to stare at her in shock. _How the fuck is she still alive?!_ Slowly, Shinzo's crazed laughter died down, and through a bit of strained effort the malfested woman rose back to her feet, still facing away from him. She then glanced at the stumps that remained of her arms.

"Well, this simply won't do. How can I be expected to carry on our fight if I have no arms with which to hold my lovely blades?"

As if in response to her words, the blood around Shinzo's body began to move towards her severed arms, slowly solidifying into tendrils. Thalias watched in horror as the blood tendrils protruding from the arms then dragged the limbs over to the malfested woman, just before sticking up and attaching to the stumps that hung from her shoulders. Slowly, the tendrils reconnected her arms, and when it was over not a single drop of blood remained. Shinzo moved her limbs around to make sure they were firmly reattached, then stretched them out in front of her.

"There, that's much better."

Thalias could feel himself trembling as he rose his sword.

"**You…what the fuck are you?!"**

The malfested woman gave no response at first, and merely stood in silent contemplation. After a moment she sighed.

"To be completely honest…"

Slowly, she turned to face him, and the young warrior gasped at what he saw.

"I don't even know anymore."

The portion of her chest previously covered by her breastplate now lay exposed, revealing small breasts concealed by the same biological armor as the rest of her body, and something far more sinister. In the center of her chest, woven between strands of flesh, was a glowing red shard. All too familiar red tendrils stuck out from the shard onto the rest of her chest, appearing to serve as the source of her corruption. Shinzo gave Thalias an emotionless stare as his gaze fell upon the shard.

"That's right. Take a good look. This is what gave me the body you see now."

"**But why…why is there a piece of Soul Edge inside of you?"**

The malfested woman let out a deep sigh at this.

"As I'm sure you're aware, many before you have tried to challenge the azure knight. Those who survive are lucky enough if they just have a few scratches. I wasn't one of them. I fought with Nightmare, and I lost after. He ran me through, but the cursed sword didn't want to part with me that easily. Some of it stayed stuck inside me, already fused to my body. And because of it, I became a malfested."

Her eyes darkened, as if recounting a suppressed memory.

"I made the mistake of heading home during the transformation. It finished right as I walked in the door. I blacked out after that, and when I woke I found my home in ruins, and my beloved lying dead at my feet. In my madness, I had stolen her life away with my own hands. Now I will be punished for my sins to live the rest of my days as a malfested, a creation of the cursed sword."

With a glare, Shinzo drew her swords again.

"My very existence is a sin. How can it not be? I, who bathe my blades in the blood of innocent and guilty alike. I, who care only for my own selfish desires. I, who seeks love with those of the same sex. I, who abandoned the light, and now dwell in darkness."

The malfested woman stopped her advance a few feet from Thalias.

"All that I have left is my revenge. With that last sin, I will condemn myself to eternal damnation. So I ask you, Thalias, why is it that you desire Soul Edge? What do you hope to accomplish by taking up such vile evil? Are you prepared to accept it, to destroy what you swore to protect, to become a creature of sin?"

The young warrior paused as he took in Shinzo's words. Much was now clear about the malfested woman, and he no longer questioned her reasons for joining him. However, he also knew that this question was meant to test him. His response now was sure to have a major impact on the future of his quest, and so he thought with great consideration before reaching an answer. Slowly, he locked eyes with Shinzo.

"**I told you before. What I desire is power, and only Soul Edge can provide me with what I need. However…"**

He raised his sword and aimed it at the malfested woman.

"**How I decide to use that power once I have it, is my choice to make. Mine alone. I don't want to hear any more about how terrible your circumstances are, all I want to know is are you with me or not?"**

The malfested woman paused in surprise at this, and couldn't help but feel impressed by the young warrior's response. The determination burning in his ethereal violet eyes was not one of reckless ambition. Somehow, it felt…protective. Shinzo sighed and shook her head.

"You never cease to amaze me." she whispered. Then she looked back at him. "Very well, you have my allegiance. But if you ever hope to defeat the azure knight, you'll have to beat me first. If you can't do that, then you might as well throw yourself from this tower."

The young warrior smirked in response.

"**I wouldn't have it any other way. Now, stop running your mouth and let's finish this!"**

The malfested woman smiled and nodded as she assumed her stance. This time Thalias made the first move, charging toward his opponent sword first. Shinzo prepared to counter another reckless attack, when all of a sudden the young warrior flung an arc of energy at her feet, raising a dust cloud as it exploded in front of her. As the malfested woman staggered back, she felt the blade of her opponent's greatsword slice across her back. Ignoring the pain, Shinzo smirked as she turned around and blocked another incoming attack from Thalias. _Not bad, boy._ The two fighters continued to exchange blow after blow, tearing the tower apart bit by bit as they descended its floors. Eventually, they both became so injured that even Shinzo was beginning to get reckless in her attacks. Now on the 23rd floor, the fighters exchanged a knowing glance at each other. Violet bore into red as they silently came to an agreement. One more clash, and then it would be over. Summoning up all the speed she had, Shinzo began to strike with all six of her weapons simultaneously. Though he was injured several times, Thalias continued to fight back, pushing himself far beyond his limits. Deciding to put all of his power into one final blow, the young warrior cried out in fury. Shinzo noticed this as he brought his sword toward her. The malfested woman paused mid step, then flew back as the massive blade sent her flying, embedding her in the wall. Panting in exhaustion, Thalias fell down on one knee. Very slowly, Shinzo detached from the wall and collapsed in front of him.

"Well…done…" she said through heavy breaths. "With this…your training is complete…you are finally ready."

Managing to get to her knees, she looked up at the exhausted warrior.

"Rest now…we have…a long walk…back to House Sorel…"

Thalias weakly nodded, then collapsed and passed out without a second thought. Once she was sure the young warrior was unconscious, Shinzo let out a deep sigh and stood up. Her brows furrowed in annoyance as she felt a light prickling sensation in her skull.

_**You let him win…**_

_So?_

_**Why?**_

Shinzo sighed again as she looked back at the unconscious warrior.

_He's strong enough now, he should be able to defeat Nightmare._

_**That remains to be seen…**_

_Suit yourself. _

The malfested woman paused for a moment before reestablishing a link with Inferno.

_What is the status of Soul Calibur?_

_**She is awakening…I can feel it…very soon now, her champion will be completely under her thrall…such a foolish boy, so easy to deceive…no wonder she chose him…**_

_Thalias will be pleased to know that. I'm sure he'd love to be able to put an end to his rival._

_**Indeed…do you still intend to carry out your plan?**_

A grim smile spread across Shinzo's lips.

_But of course. I've come too far now, I can't let this chance slip me by. You had better be prepared to uphold your end of the bargain, monster._

_**Hmph…that will depend on your success…**_

The prickling vanished as the spirit of Soul Edge left her subconscious. Now that she was fully healed, the malfested woman picked up Thalias and began to walk away from the tower, a new cloak forming out of shadows as she went. Once outside, she shot a glance back at the sleeping warrior, and couldn't help but smirk deviously.

"Oh Thalias, it really is a shame that you won't be able to savor your triumph over the azure knight. Don't worry though, I promise to make sure your death is quick and painless, just like the others…"

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry that this one is shorter than expected. Hope you enjoyed the fight! Please continue to read, and don't forget to review! Till next time! DarkNovelist out.


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